Spirit of Manchester Awards 2016 Judges | Manchester Community Central

We are delighted to have the following judges shortlisting the nominations for this year's Spirit of Manchester Awards.

	Claire Evans, CEO of 4CT and Trinity House and trustee of 4 charitable organisations Claire has worked in the voluntary sector in Manchester for 23 years and as CEO of 4CT for 11 years. 4CT runs two community centres and works with Trinity House in Rusholme to support their development. Claire also works with a range of youth and community projects across Greater Manchester providing advice and support on issues such as community assets, governance, safeguarding and policies. In her spare time Claire is a MCFC supporter and enjoys running, walking and occasional roller skating (not usually at the match though!)
	Atiha Chaudry, Manchester BME Network Atiha is Director of Equal Access Consultancy which she set up 13 years ago and is based in Manchester. Her areas of specialism include research, consultancy and training work in economic and community regeneration, equality and diversity, community cohesion and the community and voluntary sector. She has lived and worked in Manchester for over 20 years and is an active member of the local community. Over the last 25 years she has and continues to give much of her time to voluntary and community activity. Through her voluntary roles she has been on a number of local committees and at a national level she is a member of the DWP Ethnic Minority Employment Task Force. She has served on several other organisations over the years at local, regional and national level and helped set up local community groups.
	Lisa Govey – Communications and Engagement Manager, The University of Manchester Lisa is an experienced communications and marketing professional with over 23 years experience in the education sector. She worked for the British Council for 18 years in various roles, including international student recruitment, brand development and student communications and marketing. She also delivered numerous marketing and brand training courses for colleagues around the world. After the British Council Lisa joined the Association of University Administrators (AUA) where she lead on communications to support the continuing professional development of colleagues working within the higher education sector across the UK and managed a number of high profile conferences. At the University of Manchester, Lisa has worked in marketing and communications roles in the Faculty of Life Sciences and in the Central Student Communications and Marketing Team. For the past three years Lisa has worked in the Office for Social Responsibility at the University of Manchester as the Communications and Engagement Manager. She is responsible for communicating the University’s ambitious social responsibility strategy and engaging with staff, students, alumni and the local community to take forward the strategy. From this vantage point she has broad and expert knowledge of how the University behaves responsibly in all that it does both within the Greater Manchester and region, nationally and around the world.
	Graeme Hughes, Associate, Brabners LLP Graeme Hughes is a solicitor specialising in charity law. Graeme advises upon the establishment and management of charities, the incorporation of unincorporated charitable trusts and associations, governance and compliance issues, charity mergers and reorganisations and dealings with the Charity Commission, including statutory inquiries. Graeme also advises upon fundraising matters including corporate partnerships, grants and funding contracts, the operation of society lotteries and trading by charities and their subsidiaries. Graeme works with a wide range of charities and other not for profit organisations. These include small community groups, community centres, regional charities, museums, hospices, educational institutions, sports-related charities, medical research organisations, churches, mosques and other religious charities, housing associations, nationally recognised charities and organisations operating overseas. Graeme is based in the North West, spending much of his time working with organisations in Manchester. He regularly speaks on legal matters affecting charities and delivers training courses for charity trustees and staff.
	Eleanor Watts – Riverside Group Eleanor has been working with people experiencing homelessness for over 11 years throughout Greater Manchester. She has worked within the City of Manchester for the past 6 years. She manages HMP Manchester Prison Visitors Centre, Brydon Court (people experiencing homelessness with multiple needs) and 394 (people experiencing homelessness for the first time). Eleanor is also the chair of the Big Change action group within Manchester’s Homelessness Charter that promotes alternative giving and education. Last year Eleanor was the lead on the Empty Buildings Night Shelters and worked with the customers in the Stock Exchange building. Eleanor also has recently had an addition to her family - a cat called Angus who is deaf.

We are delighted that the following were our judging panel for our Spirit of Manchester Fund

	Matt Haworth – Co-founder, Reason Digital Matt is one of the UK’s leading experts on doing good with digital. Through Reason Digital, the social enterprise, digital innovation agency he co-founded in 2007, Matt has delivered projects and training for organisations including Age UK, Christian Aid, Alzheimer’s Research UK, the BBC, Virgin and many more. In 2016 Matt wrote The Digital Fundraising Book and he regularly features at conferences and in publications by the likes of The Media Trust, The Institute of Fundraising, CharityComms, Third Sector, Directory of Social Change, The Guardian, BBC, and others. In 2016 he was awarded the title of UK Digital Entrepreneur of the Year, along with his colleague Ed Cox, for his work with Reason Digital.
	Jeremy Myers - Active community citizen, Winner of Pride of Manchester award Following the Manchester riots in August 2011, Jeremy galvanised the community to come together and clean up the city. Having been awarded the Be Proud of Manchester award by Manchester City Council, he was invited to join the judging panel for these awards. Every year, Jeremy is in awe of the time, effort and contribution volunteers make towards improving the lives of the city’s residents.
	Jackie McNeish, Sheroes and heroes Jackie McNeish is a qualified youth and community worker with a Masters in Education.She has been involved in the voluntary sector for over thirty years working at places such as Proctors, the Hideaway and the Moss Side Millennium Power House. She is one of the founder members of Legacy Radio 90.1 and currently presents two shows weekly on the station. She is the founder member of Heroes and Sheroes a community awards event that recognises the work of volunteers in Manchester who impact on the lives of those from the African Caribbean Community. This event is in its 5th year and is held every February to coincide with Black History month in America and the Caribbean. Jackie is a qualified personal trainer and I offer bespoke training sessions taking an holistic approach to health with session geared towards women.
	Hayley Speed, The Men's Room Hayley has spent all her working life, working for charities that support people to make positive changes to their lives. Her current role is, Director of The Men's Room a small specialist charity that work with men in Manchester that are involved in sex work, homelessness and offending. Alongside this she is currently on the board of UKNSWP a national umbrella organisation that supports agencies that work with sex workers. Previous to her current role she worked with rough sleepers for six years providing case work to homeless people under 25. Hayley was also a dedicated volunteer for MASH Manchester Action on Street Health for nine years.
	Alex Fairweather, Chief Executive of Greater Manchester Youth Network (GMYN) Alex Fairweather is the Chief Executive of Greater Manchester Youth Network (GMYN) a youth charity based in Central Manchester. Alex has nearly 20 years of diverse experience in the voluntary/education youth sector as a Director, Manager, Consultant, Grant-maker, Trainer, Fundraiser, Volunteer, Staff member and Trustee. Alex setup GMYN in 2007 as he wanted to create an organisation that would deliver innovative youth projects, promote volunteering and help support other youth organisations. Alex prides himself on the fact that GMYN is youth led, partnership driven and an ever changing charity. Alex enjoys working with others on dynamic and innovative projects that encourage participation, delivers real social change and provides development opportunities for young people. Alex is really proud to be a judge for the Spirit of Manchester awards. He sees it as a fantastic opportunity for everyone to come together and celebrate the great work that the Manchester community has produced over the last twelve months and beyond. Alongside his CEO role, Alex is also a trustee for GMCVO and Staffordshire University Students Union.