Council’s unsung heroes celebrated at awards

TOP team . . . The Team of the Year accolade was won by the Oldham registrars. They were presented with the award by Councillor Jackie Stanton (third right)

CELEBRATIONS were in order for Oldham Council employees recognised for their hard work during the Trust Oldham People (TOP) awards 2010.

Formerly known as the council’s STAR awards, around 300 people attended the award ceremony at the Queen Elizabeth Hall to mark the great work done by employees and those from the Unity Partnership, Oldham Community Leisure (OCL), Positive Steps and First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO).

Winning the Green Award was Martin Burroughs, Oldham information development officer, for promoting green ideas and projects to colleagues.

David Johnson, a caretaker with Life Long Learning, won the Customer Service award for going above and beyond what was expected of him.

Rebecca Dale, Oldham Youth Council member, was awarded the Community Service award for her road safety campaigning following the tragic death of her brother Chris Dale in June, 2009, while crossing Lees Road, Salem.

Carly Herbert, assistant swim coach at OCL, scooped the Outstanding Contribution award for coaching Oldham’s best swimmers.

The Working Together in Oldham award was shared by Jennifer Wright, regeneration support officer, and Stan Mitchell, Street Scene area manager, who helped more than 60 young people learn new skills.

Young Employee of the Year was named as Jordan Chadwick, Modern Apprentice on the Vision Team, who has now been offered a permanent role in the council’s business support team.

Mark Reynolds, from Housing Strategy, was named Leader of the Year after staff described him as an excellent role model, and Team of the Year went to the Oldham registrars for all their hard work.

Employee of the Year was won by plumber Chris Taylor, from FCHO, for working on projects outside of his remit and promoting the apprenticeship scheme.

Councillor Mohammed Masud, cabinet member for customer services, said: “We are all working to help Oldham thrive and the TOP Awards recognise the unsung heroes who go out of their way to make sure this happens and that the borough is an attractive place where people want to live, work and visit.

“We value the work of all our employees and I congratulate all the winners and the nominees for their fantastic efforts and achievements.”