BBC Radio Lincolnshire Make a Difference awards celebrate community work

A team of firefighters who have helped with rescue efforts after earthquakes in Turkey and Morocco have received a BBC award.

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Urban Search and Rescue Team won one of eight categories in the BBC Radio Lincolnshire's Make a Difference Awards.

The winners were chosen from 31 finalists at a ceremony on Thursday.

BBC Make a Difference was set up during the pandemic to help people in need.

Neil Woodmansey is a K9 handler with the four-person team and works with six-year-old dog Colin.

"We are a specialist team put together for major collapses in the UK and terrorist incidents," he said.

"We also volunteer for International Search and Rescue and go abroad for earthquakes."

The team was recently in Morocco and earlier in the year was sent to Turkey.

"It is what we train for and you can make a difference, I think officially we got 11 live casualties out [in Turkey]."

Mr Woodmansey said the team could not have been prouder to have been given the award.

The awards are designed to shine a light on people who go the extra mile for others in their community.

Ben Poole, founder of the Starring Lincoln Theatre Company, said its nomination for the Together Award had come as a surprise.

"It was a really nice phone call to get," he said.

The community theatre group bills itself as theatre "made in Lincoln by the people of Lincoln" and Mr Poole said the award gave him "a lot of pride".

"It helps validate the work you are doing," he added.

Full list of winners

Winning the Community Award was Grandma's Pudding Company.

It is a specialist tea room based in Friskney which helps disabled adults develop workplace skills and build up their confidence.

Carole Goulding, the founding director, said since it opened in 2021 it had also become a community hub.

"We have three different WI groups come in, a dementia group, we have general friends that meet up, people with cancer, they all just make friends.

"It is just a fantastic place to be in."

The Fundraiser Award went to 13-year-old Summer Willets.

She has raised £35,000 for local charities, mainly animal orientated, over the last five years.

"We do tombolas, quiz nights, raffles and we've done a couple of pet shows," she said.

"It is great to be able to help out where I can."

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