Congratulations to our Stivichall Coventry Young Ambassadors who, as part of the CYA team, have been awared the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service. The following is from a recent press release:

Coventry Ambassadors are managed by EnV, a Community Interest Company, and are made up of over 200 volunteers based in the city. They have been honoured with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK and is the volunteering equivalent to an MBE.

The Coventry Ambassadors Programme has been inspiring local people to welcome the world to the city of Coventry since Coventry was a host city for the London Olympic Games. Over the past couple of years EnV has been sharing best practice with host cities ahead of the Tokyo2020 Games and delivered training for volunteers in Tokyo with representative Coventry Ambassador volunteers. More recently the organisation has worked closely with local schools and colleges to train over 400 Young and Youth Ambassadors.

EnV Managing Director David Boughey says: 

“Receiving this recognition for our organisation and for our volunteers brings validation of the value of our contribution over the past eight years to the community. It also enhances the pride and prestige to the fantastic volunteers over hundreds of events and thousands of volunteer hours. With increasing volunteer hours year on year, continued development of high quality training and the volunteer-led groups in areas such as marketing, social media, fundraising and training they help ensure local events run smoothly and that those attending have a great experience, not only of the event itself but also of the perception of the area.”

EnV is one of 230 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year. The number of nominations remains high year on year, showing that the voluntary sector is thriving and full of innovative ideas to make life better for those around them. 

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service aims to recognise outstanding work by volunteer groups to benefit their local communities. It was created in 2002 to celebrate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.  Recipients are announced each year on 2nd June, the anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation and the range of activities of Award winners this year is very wide. In 2012 Coventry Ambassadors received the Queen’s Diamond Award for Volunteering for their contribution to the very successful London Olympic Games. 

Cllr Linda Bigham, Former Lord Mayor of Coventry 2019-2020 said:

“The Coventry Ambassador Volunteers are a fine example of the legacy that can be gained through great events like the Olympics. Whenever I see Ambassador Volunteers at occasions, competitions and celebrations that I attend I know that I'll always be well advised, directed, informed and welcomed with a smile.”

Representatives of EnV Coventry Ambassadors will receive the award from John Crabtree OBE, Lord Lieutenant of West Midlands later this summer followed by invitation to attend a garden party at Buckingham Palace in May 2021, along with other recipients of this year’s Award.