Mayor's Civic Awards winners are honoured

Outstanding people and organisations across the Borough have been honoured by the outgoing Mayor of Stockton-on-Tees, Councillor John Gardner.

The annual Mayor's Civic Awards recognise those who have gone above and beyond in the community.

And the winners of eight categories were presented with their awards by Councillor Gardner in his final engagement as Mayor at Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council's Annual General Meeting (AGM).

"It was a pleasure to present these awards to worthy winners from around the Borough and it was a fitting way to end my Mayoral year," said Councillor Gardner.

He continued: "The community spirit across our Borough is so strong and it was brilliant to be able to shine a light on some of the residents and organisations who help make that possible."

Here are this year's winners.

Green - Mill Lane Community Garden 

The Mill Lane Community Garden group has taken an overgrown and derelict piece of land and transformed it into a fantastic community space with vegetables and flowers, as well as bug hotels. Ran by volunteers, there has been a mural created for the garden, in addition to workshops with Mill Lane Primary School and Christmas events.

Young Person - Amelia Howson and Myles Sivewright (joint winners)

Amelia and Myles are both selfless young carers, who provide support for a family member. They have gone above and beyond to raise understanding of the roles of young carers, including speaking to more than 50 professionals on Young Carers Action Day and developing a booklet to support young carers' mental health across the country.

Service to Community - Groups and Organisations - Blue Light Babies (BLB)

Blue Light Babies has more than 7,000 members creating hand-crafted items for the NHS and care sector. And BLB was contacted by the Give A Duck foundation (GAD), who provide a duck to every child in the UK diagnosed with cancer to help as a teaching aid for treatment. GAD needed outfits for the ducks and in four years, BLB has provided more than 13,000 to children's cancer centres across the country and even as far away as America.

Service to Community - Individual - Joanne Owen 

Joanne (Jo) is a paramedic in Stockton-on-Tees and her 'Snugglepods' have provided comfort for parents who have sadly lost their premature baby in an ambulance. The hand-made pouches allow a parent to hold their child if they are tragically unable to survive. Through Jo's Facebook group, Blue Light Babies, which has also won a group award, more than 8,000 Snugglepods have been donated to ambulances trusts in the North West, North East, South Central, London, Yorkshire, Northern Ireland, Isle of Wight, Jersey and Cyprus.

Service to Community - Business - Hampton by Hilton

The whole team at Hampton by Hilton (HBH) regularly go above and beyond. They are dementia-friendly trained and their monthly drop-in groups brings residents together who are living with dementia, as well as those who may be feeling lonely or isolated.

Health and Wellbeing - Women's Health Team (Hartlepool and Stockton Health) 

The Women's Health Team at Hartlepool and Stockton Health are dedicated to supporting people experiencing menopause across our area. Since launching their menopause drop-in cafés in January 2023, they have helped more than 230 people who are experiencing menopause or looking to learn more about what a loved one is going through. The drop-ins are run from a locally owned café in Stockton, Remember Me Tearooms, and offer a safe, non-clinical space for people to come and share their experiences.

Carer and Foster Carer - Lindsay Taylor

Lindsay supports young people to thrive in her care, offering practical skills such as cooking, DIY, budgeting and cleaning skills, whilst offering emotional warmth and security. As well as this, Lindsay takes the time to sit with her young people, get to know them and welcomes them into her wider family.

Mayor's Special Award - Les Southerton

Former Middlesbrough Council, Middlesbrough Town Centre Company and Middlesbrough - Stockton initiative worker Les has undertaken extensive charity work since retiring, including membership of a number of charitable organisation boards. This has included being Chair of the Tees Active Leisure (TAL) board since 2015, a role which he is due to step down from soon after years of unpaid time and effort.