Spirit of Manchester Awards Judges

Jeremy ‘Jez’ Myers is, by his own admission, not a writer. A recipient of Manchester City Council’s ‘Pride of Manchester’ Award and the Chairperson for the Spirit of Manchester Awards, the passionate Mancunian has often found himself championing the people of his beloved city and its surrounding areas. Whether writing in local papers or shouting about things online, Jez has a knack for rallying support around his community and doing what he can for others.

After meeting partner Maria Romanenko, a Ukrainian journalist, in 2020, Jez was set to leave Manchester for Kyiv. However, after fleeing Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, Jez has thrown his full support behind the people of Ukraine through a variety of volunteering projects. The story of the escape has been featured, in part, in over one hundred major media outlets around the world and has gathered tens of millions of views.  

Jez has been Chairperson of the Awards for the last decade, an honour which he doesn’t take likely. Jez considers it to be an absolute privilege to sit with the other judges and read over the many nominations, often from the absolute unsung heroes of the community, which frequently leave him awe struck.

John is a Partner at Castlefield - The Thoughtful Investor, a business which was established in Manchester in 2002 to provide ethical investment and advice to the charity sector and private individuals. 

John has worked in financial services all his career starting out in banking, before moving over to the investment management world in 2001. His career has included spells at some very large corporations (RBS, American International Group and latterly, as a Director of Tilney Group) and also smaller, boutique-type businesses. 

Outside of work, John is a proud Mancunian and a voluntary Vice President for the charity, Forever Manchester. He enjoys playing and listening to music and is (increasingly) an armchair Manchester United supporter.

Neil has been in Manchester for 27 years now and has always been involved in some form of outreach around homelessness, initially through his church, then through Barnabus. Then in 2016 he had the opportunity and privilege to join the staff team at Barnabus. Neil has had a series of roles within the charity and is currently the Partnership manager. Neil is passionate about tackling injustice hence his role at Barnabus and his desire to tackle  Homelessness in Manchester in 2025; it is after all a prime example of the injustices that exist in our society today. 

Outside of work Neil serve’s on his church’s leadership team, Neil enjoys all things motorsport (you will often find him watching some form of Motorsport at some point in any week!) plus watching all things sport, from cricket to football (don’t tell the Mancunians but he is a Liverpool fan) along with walking, swimming and reading. 

Alma Chadfield is a long serving volunteer at the Tree of Life Centre in Wythenshawe, Manchester. Nominated for the 'Dr Sylvia Sham Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Voluntary Sector' by her fellow colleagues in 2024, Alma was chosen as the winner of the award category by the Spirit of Manchester 2024 judges for her dedication to the charity for over 35 years. 

For the last 8 years, Alma has also led one the wellbeing groups called ‘Mindful Colouring’ at the centre. Inspired by her passion to bring people together and using her creativity and knowledge of mindfulness, she set up this popular group with the intention of supporting people who may be struggling with their mental or physical health. 

Alma has agreed to join the 2025 judging panel, citing it as her 'duty to do so' by giving back to the community after winning a Spirit of Manchester Award herself.