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Call to Action for Yorkshire Villages

Time is running out for villages with a population of 5,000 and under in the South and West Yorkshire area that wish to enter the 2007 Calor Yorkshire Village of the Year competition, with the deadline for entries approaching. Information about the competition went out to villages back in February encouraging them to enter and they have until May 25 to send their entries in.

The competition is organised by Yorkshire Rural Community Council (YRCC) with sponsorship provided by Calor – the UK’s leading supplier of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas). Entries are invited from any organisation within a village and entrants are judged on up to six categories covering Community Life, Business, Young People, Older People, the Environment and Information Communication Technology (ICT).

Sally Rawlings, Chief Executive of YRCC, commented: “I want to encourage as many villages as possible to get involved this year, particularly those that haven’t taken part in the competition before. We’re not looking for ‘perfect’ villages so don’t be afraid to have a go. Entering the competition can be a very positive activity for a community because often villages don’t realise just how much they’ve got going on until they actually collect the information together. The closing date is approaching, but there is still plenty of time for villages to enter if they act now.”

Later in the year the village crowned the 2007 Calor Yorkshire Village of the Year will have the added honour of being nominated to go forward and represent the county in the prestigious Calor Village of the Year® for England competition 2007/8. This will give them the opportunity of gaining recognition at national level as well as a share of a prize fund totalling more than £36,000. The county’s nominee to the 2006/7 national competition, Whixley, has already submitted its written entry and is now preparing for an imminent visit from competition judges during April.

Entry forms for the 2007 Calor Yorkshire Village of the Year competition and further information can be obtained from: Stan Roocroft (Competition Co-ordinator), Yorkshire Rural Community Council, William House, Shipton Road, Skelton, York, YO30 1XF, Tel: 01904 645271, E-mail: yrcc@yrcc.org.uk

For general information about Calor Village of the Year® visit www.calorvillageoftheyear.org.

Ends

Further press information available from: Emma Flinn, Connectpoint, tel: 0161 817 4221, email: emma.flinn@connectpoint.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

Yorkshire Rural Community Council (YRCC)

Based at Skelton, near York, YRCC is an independent charitable and voluntary organisation working across rural areas of north, south and west Yorkshire and the City of York. It works to help communities improve the quality of life for all people living and working in rural Yorkshire.

Key work covered by YRCC at present covers:

* Helping local communities carry out Parish Plans, which identify the strengths and weaknesses of village life, and plan how the local community sees future development taking place.

* Providing advice and grant support for sustainable multi-use community facilities, village and church halls for example, which can act as a focal point for village services.

* Advice and support for rural housing projects through dedicated rural housing enablers who can identify and manage projects which tackle the issue of affordable housing in rural areas.

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 competition.

The Calor Village of the Year® for England competition, now in its eleventh 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. Every year, Calor sponsors the majority of the county village competitions – which this year total more than 40 – each of which is invited to nominate one village to take part in the 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 2007 national Calor Village of the Year® for England competition alone stands at over £36,000. 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 support from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 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 competition:
email: info@calorvillageoftheyear.org or visit: www.calorvillageoftheyear.org

For all media enquiries relating the Calor Village of the Year® competition, please contact Emma Flinn:
email: emma.flinn@connectpoint.co.uk or tel: 0161 817 4221

For all general enquiries relating to the Calor Village of the Year® competition, please contact Brian Challis:
email: b.challis@ntlworld.com or tel: 01962 629768

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