Community Awards 2006 Nominees

Barter CardBusiness Community Project of the Year
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Hook Norton Brewery
A VILLAGE brewery has been nominated in the Business Community Project of the Year category for the inspiration it has given locals in supporting Leukaemia Research.

Hook Norton Brewery has supported the charity for more than 20 years after director James Clarke lost his sister to the disease in 1986, when she was 12.

Last December the village’s fundraising efforts, totalling more than £150,000, led to a prestigious one-off research grant being named The Hook Norton Fellowship.

But Mr Clarke said the company’s fundraising efforts would not have been possible without support from the rest of the village.
He said: “We are really pleased to be nominated. Although it has been 20 years since Victoria passed away the fundraising has carried on and I guess the brewery has been a focal point for that.
“ The fact fundraising has continued is great and shows what a wonderful community this is, and what great friends we have.
“ Hook Norton is a large village but it retains a strong community ethos.”
The family-run brewery in Hook Norton has held various events for Leukaemia Research over the past two decades with proceeds from coffee mornings, its annual beer festival and beer sales at Music at the Crossroads festival all going to help the cause.

The £168,000 research grant was given to Oxford-based doctor Graham Collins by Leukaemia Research to try and develop a better understanding of DNA abnormalities in cancerous cell.

Trinder Funeral Service
A FUNERAL company has been nominated for the special caring it demonstrated towards the bereaved.

Staff at Trinder Funeral Service went the extra mile in December last year by giving up their time to help hold their first remembrance ceremony.

Bereaved friends and relatives they had dealt with over the year were invited to remember their loved ones in the specially dedicated service.

Sector manager James Hewison, who was at the service, said: “We have always had a memorial Christmas tree on which people can place tags dedicated to their loved ones and the idea of a service took that further.

“It seemed an extension of our role for caring for people and being part of the community.”

The service was introduced on December 1 in the chapel on the company's premises in Middleton Road, Banbury.

Those who had lost a friend or relative over the year were sent a personal invitation, although anybody was welcome. They then spent about an hour singing Christmas carols, placing tags on the Christmas tree and lighting a candle in memory of the deceased.

“It was a lovely service; it was extremely popular and the chapel was full. It was very moving and useful to people.

“We received a lot of nice notes from people thanking us afterwards,” said Mr Hewison.

Following the service's success the idea will be introduced across all Mid Counties Co-operative funeral companies, of which Trinder Funeral Service belongs.

“We are definitely planning to repeat the service again this year,” said Mr Hewison.

Ellacott
ONE of Banbury's leading independent accountancy firms has been recognised for its commitment to the community.

Ellacott (formerly Ellacott Stranks) in West Bar donated a trolleyful of crockery, tea and biscuits to the Beacon Centre for the homeless as part of a drive to increase its involvement with local charities.

Founded in Banbury more than 40 years ago, the company recently underwent an image overhaul, relaunching itself more simply as Ellacott.

Marketing manager Graham Goodman explained: “We wanted to update our image to provide a more corporate service.”

In anticipation of this a more modern, dynamic approach has been adopted, with a new website.

Mr Goodman added: “Our website is constantly updated and all the latest news automatically uploaded.

“This way we are able to push back the boundaries of accountancy and give all our clients the opportunity to look at their accounts online in total confidentiality. We are one of very few accountancy firms in the country to offer this.”