Every year the University celebrates the actions of staff, students and alumni who give their time and commitment to communities locally, national and internationally through the Volunteer of the Year Awards.

Previous nominees have taken on a wide range of roles to support vulnerable members of the community both in the UK and overseas, including support to the homeless, the elderly, those in crisis and those living in poverty. They have done this through mobilising local communities, raising vital funds and providing one to one support.

Nominations are now open for the 2017 awards with three categories:

  • Student of the Year – open to any current undergraduate or postgraduate of the University of Manchester. This award is in association with University of Manchester Students’ Union.
  • Staff of the Year – open to any current staff member of the University.
  • Alumni of the Year – open to any graduate of The University of Manchester (including Victoria University and UMIST).

Do you do something to support others or know a student or member of staff at the University who does? If so why not nominate them. The process is easy!

Last year’s staff winner was Kirsty Keywood, an academic in the School of Law. She advocates for the rights of people with learning difficulties and mental health problems in a number of ways including having volunteered as an appropriate adult for Greater Manchester Police and supporting the development of services of the Manchester People First charity.

Each winner receives a financial donation to the organisation that they support: £300 for the overall winner, and £200 and £100 for the 2nd and 3rd place runners up. In addition the overall winner in each category is put forward for the University Social Responsibility Award, one of the President’s Distinguished Achievement Awards.

For more information and to make a nomination go to www.manchester.ac.uk/volunteeroftheyear.

To inspire you, information on all the 2016 winners, and winners from previous years, can also be found on these pages.

The Awards are organised by the Student Development & Community Engagement Division, which is part of the Directorate for the Student Experience.

The deadline for Volunteer of the Year nominations is Sunday 12th March 2017.

Posted by Lindsay Gilbert, Volunteering & Community Engagement Manager, The University of Manchester