Thanet Community Champions Awards 2025 – Celebrating the heart of our community
Representatives from Thanet’s voluntary, community and social enterprise groups got together on Wednesday 12 March 2025 at the Thanet Community Champions Awards.
Hosted by Thanet District Council in partnership with Social Enterprise Kent, the awards honoured the individuals and organisations making a real difference in their communities.
In all, 33 winners were each awarded a framed certificate at the ceremony at The Pavilion in Broadstairs. Nine winners were recognised as overall champions in their category and received an engraved Community Champions award. The overall winner, STAKlife CIC, won the highest accolade, Champion of Champions.
Local people were invited to submit nominations for their Community Champions in October 2024. A total of 157 nominations were received, with the winning entries selected by a panel including the Mayors of Margate and Broadstairs, Thanet District Council Cabinet member for Regeneration and Property, Cllr Ruth Duckworth and CEO of Social Enterprise Kent, Rebecca Smith.
The full list of award winners is available on the council’s website.
Cllr Ruth Duckworth, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Property at Thanet District Council, said: “It was a real pleasure to attend the Thanet Community Champions Awards for 2025, and to hear first-hand about the great work that’s going on across the district. There was such a diverse range of projects, all of which are making a positive impact in our communities.
“The awards celebrated the dedication, passion, and resilience shown by the people who give their time to improve lives across the district. These awards not only recognised outstanding contributions from groups and individuals but will also, I hope, encourage other people to get involved.”
Rebecca Smith, CEO of Social Enterprise Kent, added: “It has been an honour to facilitate these awards and celebrate the incredible efforts of Thanet’s voluntary sector. The energy and commitment in the room was truly powerful. Seeing so many inspirational individuals and organisations being recognised for their work was a privilege, and we are incredibly proud to support and celebrate them. These champions are the backbone of our community, and we hope their stories inspire even more people to get involved.”
Local VCSE organisations were also invited to take part in a sector-specific conference on Wednesday 12 March. Representatives from over 70 organisations attended, and heard updates on Thanet’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund, presentations from community projects and to network.
Further information on Thanet’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund is available on the council’s website.
Newsroom
See all
Cabinet members have approved a new Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) designed to curb antisocial behaviour and safeguard public spaces across Thanet.
Thanet District council has appointed Your Leisure Kent Ltd to operate five of the district’s public tennis venues. The interim contract runs from Tuesday 2 July 2026 until the end of the year. This appointment ensures that the tennis courts will be managed and maintained to a high standard, for players of all levels and […]
Increased resources to support the council’s waste and recycling service are now in place. This follows disruption to collections for some residents since the introduction of new recycling services for 27,000 Thanet households. These changes were introduced in response to new national Simpler Recycling requirements by the government.