The VAL Awards 2025
The VAL Awards 2025 is extra special as we celebrate 60 years of VAL! For six decades, VAL has led the way in excellence, innovation, and impact, shaping the VCSE in Leicester and Leicestershire. Let’s Celebrate the fantastic contribution volunteers, charities and community groups make. It’s a time to honour the truly inspirational leaders, the unsung heroes, and those who have gone above and beyond over the past 12 months.
Nominations are now open – Nominate now!
Join us as we reflect on our journey, celebrate remarkable accomplishments, and look ahead to an even brighter future!
The VAL Awards will be held on Friday 3 October at The Grand Hotel Leicester. Tickets and more information will be available soon.
We would like to say a huge thank you to our Headline sponsor, Hastings Direct and a special thank you to all of our award sponsors and partners.
Award categories
This year, there will be 12 Award Categories. Find out more about each award category.
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City Charity of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Springfields Advisory Ltd
- This award is to recognise those groups based in and delivering services in Leicester city, and the fantastic work they do to improve our inner-city communities.
- Criteria
- Must be based within and deliver services within the City of Leicester
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County Charity of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Rowleys
- This award is to recognise those groups based in and delivering services in Leicestershire, and the fantastic work they do to improve our rural and county communities.
- Criteria
- Must be based within and deliver services within the Leicestershire area (Blaby, Charnwood, Harborough, Hinckley & Bosworth, Melton, North West Leicestershire and Oadby & Wigston districts)
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Social Enterprise of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: University of Leicester School of Business
- An organisation doesn’t have to be a ‘traditional’ charity in order to give something back. A social enterprise is a business which invests the majority of its profits into social good within the community, but it can also be the trading arm of a charity. This award is to recognise those social enterprises based in and delivering services in Leicestershire.
- Criteria
- Organisation must meet the broad definition of a social enterprise
- Must be based in Leicester or Leicestershire (Leicester city, Blaby, Charnwood, Harborough, Hinckley & Bosworth, Melton, North West Leicestershire and Oadby & Wigston districts)
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Volunteer-Led Organisation of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Meesh Consulting
- Not all community groups are able to secure or generate enough funding to pay staff. Many rely heavily, or sometimes entirely, on volunteers to deliver services. This award is for those charities whose selfless work in our local communities often goes completely unrecognised.
- Criteria
- Must have a minimal number of paid staff, with the majority of staff being volunteers
- Must be based in, or deliver services in, the Leicester or Leicestershire areas (Leicester city, Blaby, Charnwood, Harborough, Hinckley & Bosworth, Melton, North West Leicestershire and Oadby & Wigston districts)
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Trustee of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: ER Recruitment
- Trustees are volunteers who give up their own time to guide the administration and governance of charities. Even though they’re not paid, Trustees take on a lot of personal and legal responsibility. We want to recognise those individuals who help to keep our voluntary sector running smoothly and responsibly.
- Criteria
- Must be a trustee of a charity based in Leicester or Leicestershire (Leicester city, Blaby, Charnwood, Harborough, Hinckley & Bosworth, Melton, North West Leicestershire and Oadby & Wigston districts)
- Must have been a trustee Since 1 Jan 2020
- Must be registered as a trustee on the Charity Commission database
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Kathryn Burgess Volunteer of the Year Award
- Award Sponsored by: Knights Plc
- Volunteers selflessly give up their own time to help others. Though most volunteers offer their time with no expectations of rewards, we want to recognise those extra-special individuals who have gone above and beyond to help their local communities.
- This award has been renamed the Kathryn Burgess Volunteer of the Year in honour of the late Kathryn Burgess, CEO of CALS (Community Advice and Law Service), for her excellent service to the sector.
- Criteria
- Must have volunteered in 2024/25
- Must be aged over 25 years
- Must have volunteered for an organisation based in Leicester or Leicestershire (Leicester city, Blaby, Charnwood, Harborough, Hinckley & Bosworth, Melton, North West Leicestershire and Oadby & Wigston districts)
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Inspiring Leader of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Voids Limited
- This award recognises the exceptional achievements of an inspiring leader who has overcome significant obstacles to make a real difference to their own lives and their community.
- Criteria
- Must be an individual
- Must be aged over 29 years
- Be based in Leicester or Leicestershire
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Fundraiser of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Champions UK Plc
- Do you know someone dedicated to supporting, raising funds and awareness of a charity or cause?
This award recognises fundraisers “who have shown creativity, commitment and inspiration” while raising money for a charity or organisation. It celebrates the people who have gone above and beyond when it comes to raising money. - Criteria
- Must have raised money for a charity or organisation this year
- Be based in Leicester or Leicestershire
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Youth Charity of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Mindera UK Foundation
- The Youth Charity of the Year award recognises a charity that has shown exceptional commitment to improving the lives of young people. This charity will have demonstrated meaningful impact, strong youth involvement, and innovative approaches to supporting and empowering young people in their community. Their work should inspire others and reflect a lasting dedication to positive change for future generations.
- Criteria
- Must be a Youth Charity working with young people aged 16-25 years.
- Be based in Leicester or Leicestershire
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Charity & Business Partnership of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: PPL PRS
- Businesses who work with their local communities are organisations who are dedicated to making the community, and the world, a better place; they deserve recognition for the continued work and support that they provide. They can also be a realistic force for good and social change.
- Criteria
- Must be a Business
- Be based in Leicester or Leicestershire
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Overall Charity of the Year
- Award Sponsored by: Hastings Direct
- The winner of this award will be chosen by our judges from the winners of the other Charity of the Year categories.
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Kevan Liles Recognition award
- Award Sponsored by: Voluntary Action LeicesterShire
- VAL has been around for 60 years – this special award is chosen by us to recognise an organisation or individual that we feel has had a significant impact on our voluntary sector. It’s a way for us to say a personal thanks to someone we feel has made a particularly important contribution to our local communities.
- This award has been renamed the Kevan Liles Lifetime Achievement award in honour of our former VAL CEO, Kevan Liles MBE for his exceptional 33 years of service to the sector.
Nominate your Charity or Volunteer of the year
To increase the chances of your group or organisation being nominated, please provide detailed information about your achievements and impact. Describe your key initiatives, innovative approaches, and successful collaborations. Include any links to case studies, and data that show the positive effects of your work. The more specific and clear your details, the stronger your nomination will be.
If you are interested in upcoming sponsorship opportunities or would like to gift a table for the event, please contact Trace Voss on: trace.v@valonline.org.uk
If you would like to buy tickets to attend on the night, please contact us on: valawards@valonline.org.uk
- Nominations will close at 4pm on Thursday 17 July 2025.
- VAL reserves the right to change this date.
- You are only able to nominate an individual or an organisation twice, maximum.(For example you can only nominate for 2 awards).
- Nominees will be sorted into the relevant categories by VAL based on the information provided on this page. VAL’s decision on which category a nominee falls into will be final.
- Nominated organisations will be asked to provide additional information, which will be given to judges in order to be scored against.
- VAL may contact anyone who provides a nomination to ask for more information about the nominee.
- VAL reserves the right to have the final say on which nominations will be passed forward to the judging panel and on the award winners.
- Current VAL staff and volunteers will not be eligible to receive awards.
- Nominees will be asked if they want to be a part of the awards. If nominees do not agree to participate, or do not return the information for the judging panel, they will not be progressed to the judging stage.
A special thanks to all of our sponsors for supporting us and making this event possible:
Thank you to our VAL Awards 2025 Ambassadors:
