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Does Your Village Tick the Right Boxes?

The search has begun for the top villages in Durham with the launch of the county’s 2007 Calor Village of the Year competition. Competition organisers, Durham Rural Community Council (DRCC), are encouraging entries from every village in the county with a population of 5,000 and under, and the deadline for entries is 29th June 2007.

Entries to the Calor Durham Village of the Year competition are invited from any organisation within a village. Categories cover four aspects of rural village life: People, Business, Environment, and Communications. Villages are also asked to explain in less than 500 words: ‘What makes your village a special place?’ There are cash prizes on offer to the overall winner as well as an overall runner up.

Competition co-ordinator, Michelle O’Keefe is looking forward to a good response from villages this year. She commented: “The entry form is mostly in a tick box format and we have also simplified the number of categories from six to four, so we hope this will encourage as many villages as possible to give it a go. Entering the competition is easy and provides an opportunity to audit services and activities, to bring people together in a celebration of all that’s happening as well as offering a chance to raise the profile of the community. We look forward to seeing some new faces in 2007 as well as those villages that have entered in previous years.”

Later in the year one village will have the added honour of being nominated to go forward and represent Durham 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, West Cornforth, has already submitted its written entry and is now preparing for a visit from competition judges during April.

Entries to the competition are invited from all villages in Durham with a population of 5,000 and under. For further information and entry forms, please contact Michelle O’Keefe at DRCC on 01207 529621, email michelle.okeefe@durhamrcc.org.uk. The deadline for entries is June 29 and judging will take place during July.

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Further press information available from: Emma Flinn, Connectpoint, 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 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 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, tel: 01962 629768, or visit: www.calorvillageoftheyear.org

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