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This year’s winners of the King’s Award for Voluntary Service are due to be announced on November 14.

But already calls are being made for contenders to be suggested for the 2024 round of awards.

Wigan-based deputy lieutenants of Greater Manchester are leading the appeal and also conduct interviews in the first round of the selection process which ends with a panel at the House of Commons.

The Queen's Award for Voluntary Service was bestowed on The Brick homelessness charity in Wigan two years ago. Melanie Bryan OBE, deputy lieutenant of Greater Manchester, is seen here presenting it to volunteer co-ordinator Emma Shaw

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One of those deputy lieutenants, businessman Martin Ainscough, said: “Awards for volunteering don’t get any more special than this in this country.

"And it is truly aimed at highlighting and honouring those great people who give their time and energy freely in order to improve life for others.

"Every day ‘ordinary’ people’ make an extraordinary difference through volunteering with groups across the UK.

"Chances are that most people know at least one group who immediately springs to mind. However, most of these groups will not have thought of being nominated for the prestigious King’s Award for Voluntary Service.

“Any group of three or more people doing volunteering work can be nominated for this award. The majority of the group must be volunteers.”

In order to be eligible, nominated groups must also meet the following criteria:

• More than half the volunteers must have the right to live in the UK;

• The group must have been running for three years or more to be nominated.

To be nominated, the group should do work that:

• Provides a service and meets a need for people living in the local community;

• Is supported, recognised and respected by the local community and the people who benefit from it; and

• Is run locally.

Winners receive a certificate signed by the King and a domed glass crystal. Representatives from the group may also be invited to attend a royal garden party.

The form to nominate a group for an award is straight forward, and is done online: https://kavs.dcms.gov.uk

Mr Ainscough said: “If you know a group that deserves to be recognised, please start that nomination!”

Wiganers urged to nominate unsung heroes for the country's top volunteering prize