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Call to Action for Isle of Wight Villages

Following the launch of the 2006 Isle of Wight Village of the Year competition last month, competition organisers, the Isle of Wight Rural Community Council (RCC), are reminding villages not to leave it too late to get their entries in.

The competition, which is sponsored by Calor in association with local sponsors the Isle of Wight County Press, Cemoc and Arc Environmental, judges communities on six key aspects of village life, with categories in Building Community Life, Business, Young People, Older People, Environment and Information Communication Technology (ICT). Any community organisation can enter on behalf of a village and there are cash prizes on offer, including £500 prize money specifically for the Building Community Life category, which has been made available thanks to continued competition support from Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) at both county and national level. There is also a £300 prize in the Young People, Business and Environment categories.

Competition organiser on behalf of the Isle of Wight RCC, Janet Short, commented: “Not only can villages that enter this competition gain recognition at county level, but the village crowned the 2006 Isle of Wight Village of the Year will have the added honour of being nominated to go forward and represent the county in the prestigious national Calor Village of the Year® for England competition, which has a prize fund in excess of £39,000. Last year’s national nominee, Chale, went on to win a regional title in the competition and is now also competing in a special 10th Anniversary event so we know our villages have got what it takes to compete on a national scale. I want to encourage as many villages as possible to give the competition a go this year. It’s simple to enter and the benefits to the community can be immense. The deadline for entries is approaching in a few weeks, but if villages act now they do still have time to get involved.”

For further information and entry forms please contact the RCC offices on 01983 524058. The deadline for entries is June 9th and a presentation evening for winning villages will take place at Rookley Village Hall on Tuesday 18th July.

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Further press information from: Emma Flinn, Flent PR, a Connectpoint Company
tel: 0161 817 4200 / email: emma.flinn@connectpoint.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

Calor Village of the Year®

Calor, the leading supplier of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) to those living and working in the countryside, has supported rural activities in England, Scotland and Wales for 20 years through its Rural Sponsorship programme, which includes the Calor Village of the Year® for England and Wales competitions and the Calor Scottish Community of the Year competition.

The Calor Village of the Year® for England competition, now in its tenth year, was founded and developed by Calor, and is organised and funded by the company on an annual basis.

Please note that Calor Village of the Year® is a registered trademark and should be referred to in full in all circumstances.

Entry to the Calor Village of the Year® for England competition is through the existing county competition network.

Following competition support in 2005, Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) is once again providing Calor with additional funding in 2006 to enhance the community life element of the competition through the Building Community Life category. Defra’s special aim is to encourage the inclusion of all groups and individuals into the fabric of rural community life - building cohesive and mutually supportive communities. Defra’s involvement means that every village in England has the opportunity to enter the 2006 Calor Village of the Year® for England competition.

The national Calor Village of the Year® judges look for well-balanced, pro-active, caring communities which, irrespective of size, have made the best of local opportunities to maintain and enhance the quality of life for all residents.

The prize money for the national Calor Village of the Year® for England competition alone stands at over £39,000. First prize is £7,000 with £2,000 going to each of five regional winners. In addition, there are five category prizes of £500 within each region (covering Business, Environment, Care for Older People, Care for Young People and Information Communications Technology), and a prize of £750 for the winner of the Building Community Life category in each of the five regions. The five regional winners of the Information Communication Technology category are judged to find an overall winner, the award for which is £1,000. There is also, thanks to the Defra support, a prize of £2,000 for an overall Building Community Life winner, which is selected from the five regional winners.

For general information on the Calor Village of the Year® for England and Wales competitions:
email: info@calorvillageoftheyear.org, tel: 01962 629768, or visit: www.calorvillageoftheyear.org

For more information on the Calor Scottish Community of the Year competition:
visit: www.communityoftheyear.co.uk

For more information on Defra:
visit: www.defra.gov.uk or for information specific to rural affairs visit: www.defra.gov.uk/rural/default.htm

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