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Hannah Agnew from An Tobar CIC in Silverbridge has been named as 'Young Person of the Year' at the recent Social Enterprise NI Awards held in Belfast.
Hannah was instrumental in starting up Cafe Amach at An Tobar, a facility for the LBGT+ community and friends in South Armagh and beyond and has worked tirelessly hosting incredible events for all. The next event is on Friday 28 October when they hold a Halloween Pub Quiz & Karaoke Night in their tearoom-turned-pub space.
Slieve Gullion Councillor Oonagh Magennis congratulated Hannah on her achievement "A brilliant achievement for Hannah who has worked so hard on her fantastic new project getting Cafe Amach up and running within the An Tobar Wellness Centre."
Over 600 individuals from the private, public and social sector came together at the event which marked the 10th anniversery of the awards, to honour and celebrate the achievements of the social economy sector in Northern Ireland.
Like any other sector, times are challenging, and organisations are under immense pressure to control costs and generate income to simply, survive. This is no different for social enterprise organisations however, many of the services or products they provide either directly or indirectly support some of the most vulnerable within the community and are therefore vital.
The evening brought a strong sense of hope and togetherness as well as a reminder of how important the sector is to Northern Ireland and beyond. Economy Minister Gordon Lyons thanked the sector for their contribution:
“I am pleased to be associated with Social Enterprise NI’s Awards which recognises both the sector's achievements and resilience. I welcome and value the impact social enterprises have on the recovery and growth of the Northern Ireland economy, now and in the future”
Speaking about the success of the event, Colin Jess, Chief Executive of Social Enterprise NI said:
“The Social Enterprise NI Awards is a time to take a moment to recognise, commend, and promote the individuals and businesses creating positive change and social impact within Northern Ireland. I believe we achieved just that at our celebratory event last week. We now continue our work to support and represent social enterprises to ensure their voice is heard at all levels of business and with decision makers all year round.”
List of awarded organisations:
Best New Start Up
- Winner: Harry's Place CIC
Health and Wellbeing Award
- Winner: CAN (Compass Advocacy Network)
- Highly Commended: Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL)
Rural Social Enterprise Award
- Winner: Made in Mourne
- Highly Commended: Powered by Sport
Credit Union Award - Under 40m Turnover
- Winner: Waterside Credit Union
Credit Union Award - Over 40m Turnover
- Winner: Ballymena Causeway Credit Union
Green/Circular Economy Award
- Winner: Ulster Supported Employment Ltd (USEL)
- Highly Commended: Responsible Plastic Management (RPM)
Best Use of Digital Marketing
- Winner: Inspire
- Highly Commended: The Designerie
Consumer Facing Award
- Winner: Naturally North Coast & Glens Market
Young Person of the Year
- Winner: Hannah Agnew - An Tobar CIC
- Highly Commended: Donovan Evit - Rcity Youth
Emerging Leader of the Year
- Winner: Jacqui Pope - GLL/Better
- Highly Commended: Paula Murphy-Gibson - You Glow Girl
Leader of the Year
- Winner: Jayne Taggart - Enterprise Causeway
- Highly Commended: Rym Akhonzada - Yalla CIC
Council of the Year
- Winner: Belfast City Council
Social Partnership Award
- Winner: idverde
- Highly Commended: Graham
Outstanding Voluntary Team
- Winner: Recharge CIC
- Highly Commended: Yalla CIC
Outstanding Staff Team
- Winner: Outwork Team (with The Turnaround Project)
- Highly Commended: Sensations Learning Support CIC
- Highly Commended: The Hummingbird Project CIC
Outstanding Combined Volunteer and Staff Team
- Winner: Harrys Place CIC
- Highly Commended: Home Start's Pre-loved Shop Newcastle
Social Enterprise of the Year – Small
- Winner: Enterprise Causeway
- Highly Commended: Enterprise North West
Social Enterprise of the Year – Large
- Winner: Habitat for Humanity Ireland
- Highly Commended: Radius Housing
If you would like more information about Social Enterprise NI, contact Amanda Johnston at amanda@socialenterpriseni.org.
