Spirit of Manchester Awards 2025 nomination form

Spirit of Manchester 2025 logo

Nominations for a Spirit of Manchester Award 2025

We are asking for nominations of who you feel should be acknowledged, highlighted and thanked for their outstanding work over the last year. It can be absolutely anyone – friend, neighbour or local community group our only stipulation is that they either must live in or have delivered their support within the city of Manchester.

If you are shortlisted you will need to make a one minute film that will be voted on by the audience (virtual and live) at the Awards evening to determine the winner. Macc will offer support in the producing and editing of the films for individuals/organisations that require assistance. You will receive further details on this if you are shortlisted. 

The description provided when making a nomination will be on put on our website with very minimal editing (typos etc) and will also be included in our brochure slightly edited down. So the text you submit is the text that will be included - please be aware if you are including personal details.

How do the awards work? 

Click here for how the process works, how nominations are handled and how all of this happens.

The nomination form is below and the deadline is 6 May 2025 at 4pm.

 

Guidelines for nominations

  • All nominations must be for the city of Manchester (not Greater Manchester)
  • Applicants need to write a maximum of 200 words giving an example of how the individual/organisation meets the criteria
  • Please attach a picture with your submission
  • Nominations close on 6 May 2025 at 4pm

The criteria for each category can be found below when selecting the award category.

Please note: You only need one nomination per organisation or individual in a category - it isn't the amount of nominations they get. We would much prefer one as it makes it more difficult to shortlist otherwise as we can only pick one nomination (200 words max) to submit to the judges. You can however nominate an organisation or individual under more than one category but please write different descriptions for each.

How information about you will be used

Your personal information will be stored in our password protected online database. Once we receive your information, we will make our best effort to ensure its security on our systems. We will not share your information with third parties. To read more about how the information you provide us will be used please read our privacy policy

We are asking that all nominations are submitted with a picture of the person/organisation that you are nominating. Your written nomination will be used on our website and in the Awards brochure alongside the picture. Please confirm you have consent to use this picture by ticking the consent button on the online nomination form. (If at any point you want any content removed due to a change in circumstance please email: jo@macc.org.uk)

There will be a shortlisting process by a judging panel for all nominations with a winner for each category voted for on the night except the Young volunteer of the year and The Dr Sylvia Sham Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Sector categories where an outright winner will be chosen in advance. The shortlist in each of these categories will be determined and informed by the end of June. If you are shortlisted you will be contacted to make a short one minute film. These films will be voted for on the evening.

Important: Please read all text before submitting your nomination
 

Nomination form

Please select the category you want to submit under:
Volunteer of the year criteria

Open to all volunteers within the city of Manchester. Volunteers should be nominated by the organisation that they volunteer for. Nominations must show:

  • How they go above and beyond their role
  • How they inspire and motivate others to volunteer
  • The impact they have made
Volunteering team criteria

Volunteer teams should be nominated by the organisation they volunteer for. Nominations must show:

  • How the team has made an impact to the organisation and the wider community
  • Give a demonstration of how a team has worked together on a specific project/challenge
  • Where the team have remained organised and shown innovation
Volunteer involving organisation criteria

Organisations can nominate themselves or be nominated by a volunteer. Nominations must show how the organisation:

  • Promotes, retains and rewards volunteers/volunteering
  • Makes volunteers feel part of the team
  • Promotes volunteering through their vision and values
Young volunteer of the year criteria

Open to all volunteers within the city of Manchester (​up to the age of 25). Volunteers should be nominated by the group or organisation that they volunteer for. Nominations must show:

  • How they go above and beyond their role
  • How they inspire and motivate others to volunteer
  • The impact they have made
  • ​How they are improving the life chances of children and young people across the city of Manchester

The overall winner of this category will be chosen by our panel of judges with the recipient notified during Volunteers Week (2-8 June).

Tackling inequalities criteria

We are looking for submissions that show us how they addressed issues of equality issues and challenged discrimination during the last year. This could include inequality on the basis of gender, age, ethnicity or poverty.

Inspiring campaign criteria

Organisations can nominate themselves or be nominated by someone else. Nominations must show how the organisation saw a need for change or action, what they did and how that has made a difference.

Creative community spirit criteria

Local individuals or groups who have developed a creative outlet or project to inspire hope and unity during the last year. Open to anyone who used a form of art (performance, craft or other artistic medium) to support others and the community around them.

Partnership and collaboration criteria

How have you worked in partnership or collaborated to make a difference and fulfil a need in your community? How did working in partnership mean your task was successful/more effective. Partnerships can be voluntary or community sector organisation working with the public sector, private company or another community group.

Community and business collaboration criteria

This award is to recognise the support private sector/businesses have given to VCSE organisations in Manchester. We are looking for VCSE organisations and businesses that are working well together to help make a difference in your community. Maybe it’s from volunteer days, support for building work, financial donation or ongoing commitment in other ways. Whilst we would welcome nominations from either party to highlight work done in the city of Manchester, we would especially welcome joint submissions that show how the relationship works and what both parties have learnt from working together.  

Nominations must show:                                

  • What positive benefit and difference the business has made to the organisation‘s work. This might be from investment, sharing knowledge & skills, or time the business has given to the organisation
  • How the business has been a champion for the VCSE organisation and the community or cause it supports.
  • How collaboration creates benefit for the people of Manchester
Trustee/committe member of the year criteria 

Open to individual trustees/committee members of voluntary, community and social enterprise sector organisations within the city of Manchester. The trustee/committee member should be nominated by the organisation for whom they are a trustee/committee member. Nominations must show:

  • What positive difference the trustee/committee member has made in the organisation
  • What qualities, knowledge and skills they bring to the Board or Committee
  • How they support other trustees/committee members and develop good governance
  • How they are a champion for the organisation

By trustee/committee member we mean unpaid roles as trustees, committee members, board members or directors.

Service user involving organisation criteria

Organisations can nominate themselves or be nominated by a person who uses the organisation’s services. Nominations must show:

  • How they involve the people who benefit from the service in delivery and shaping the service
  • Examples such as including service users on the board, asking for feedback regularly or holding consultations. Have service users become staff / volunteers in delivering the service?
Social economy champion criteria

This award is for those organisations who trade and seek to make a surplus, but unlike traditional businesses, they reinvest all their profits to fight for positive social change. 

Nominations must show how the organisation creates positive change, and puts positive change at the centre of its work.

Nominees can include: social enterprises, social entrepreneurs, trading charities, co-operatives, community benefit societies and community businesses. Organisations can nominate themselves or be nominated by others.

Community cohesion criteria

For an individual or group who has done some great work to bring communities together to understand, appreciate and positively value each other. The work must have taken place in Manchester within the last 12 months. Nominations must show:

  • Activities which have brought together people from across more than one community. These can be communities which are about a shared place, a shared identity or shared interests
  • How they promote growing together in harmony rather than conflict and celebrate the diverse nature of the people who live, work and study in this city
The Dr Sylvia Sham Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Sector criteria

This category is for an individual and can be wider than their contribution in the last year. An organisation, colleague or service user can nominate the individual and the overall winner will be picked by the panel of judges and told before the Awards event. Nominations must show how the individual has made a significant contribution to the voluntary and community sector over a number of years.

Nominations should be no more than 200 words

Eligibility

Organisations or individuals being nominated must be based in or have delivered the majority of their support within the city of Manchester. If we receive a nomination from outside of the city of Manchester, or their services are solely based outside of the city, we will not process the nomination and it will not make it to the judges for consideration.

Your contact details

Second person contact details

Would you like to be contacted if your nomination is shortlisted?
How would you like to be contacted?

Nominated person/organisation's contact details

Does the individual/organisation know they have been nominated?

Photo consent

We are asking for nominations to be accompanied by a picture. If you are unable to attach a photo please continue to submit your nomination and we will get in touch with you.

Please note: photos will be used in our awards brochure and in our online publicity which includes our website and social media channels. 

If you have any problems please email: jo@macc.org.uk

Please upload your picture and tick the consent box below.

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80 MB limit.
Allowed types: gif, jpg, jpeg, png.
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