Sport Aberdeen is celebrating after receiving the prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a charity or voluntary group can receive in the UK.

Volunteers support Sport Aberdeen in the delivery of its community-based programmes including Active Schools, Active Lifestyles, supporting learn to swim programmes as well as helping to improve the quality of our golf courses at Hazlehead.

Volunteer representatives of Sport Aberdeen attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace in May, along with other recipients of this year’s Award. It is one of 281 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year. The number of nominations and awards has increased year on year since the awards were introduced in 2002, showing that the voluntary sector is thriving and full of innovative ideas to make life better for those around them.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service aims to recognise outstanding work by volunteer groups to benefit their local communities. It was created in 2002 to celebrate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee. Winners are announced each year on 2 June – the anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation. Award winners this year are wonderfully diverse. They include volunteers helping people to overcome mental health problems through sport, volunteers using caravans as mobile café/information centres in geographically remote location and another group mentoring children who have a parent in prison.

Representatives of Sport Aberdeen will receive the award from the Lord Lieutenant of Aberdeen later this summer.

Sport Aberdeen’s Chairman, Colin G. Taylor, was delighted with the news:

“It came as a complete surprise, as I wasn’t aware that we had even been nominated. Receiving the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service is fantastic recognition for the volunteers that work with us and to the outstanding work they do for us in the local communities on a daily basis.”

“We have nearly 1500 volunteers supporting our programmes across the company. Their commitment and enthusiasm helping us to deliver valued sport and physical activity programmes and services is incredible.”

This latest recognition is further evidence of Sport Aberdeen’s work in the community.