THE deadline is looming for entries to this year's A Place to be Proud of awards - and the final push is on for nominations.

On Saturday, representatives from some of the event sponsors joined staff from Festival Place shopping centre to hand out entry forms and encourage shoppers to nominate community heroes and local groups for the prestigious awards.

Scores of forms were given out, together with balloons, from 10am to 4pm in Porchester Square, outside Marks & Spencer.

The deadline for nominations for this year's awards is Friday and the awa-rds ceremony will be held in Festival Place, on Tuesday, June 7.

The special awards, which were held for the first time last year and were hosted by GMTV's Dr Hilary Jones, recognise and celebrate individual and collective excellence across the borough.

Jane Stewart, marketing manager at Festival Place, said: "This year we have added new categories to the awards, including People of Our Time, Business and the Environment and Business in the Community.

"We are looking for the contributions that are made by individuals, groups, organisations, places and initiatives that make our borough a place to be proud of."

This year's event is again being organised by Gazette Newspapers, Basing-stoke and Deane Borough Council, Festival Place and the Local Strategic Partnership.

Ms Stewart added: "It is very easy to nominate someone for an award.

"This year we have guidelines to help people make their submissions, so they can understand exactly what the judges are looking for."