KIND and helpful neighbours who have gone out of their way to help older residents maintain their independence have been honoured at an awards ceremony.

The second Good Neighbour Awards, organised by Hampshire County Council, was held at the Great Hall, Winchester, in recognition of volunteers whose invaluable contributions have helped make a difference to older people in the community.

This year the awards were split into two categories - the Good Neighbour Individual Award and the Good Neighbour Group Award.

There were 32 individual winners and five group winners, who were presented with a certificate and either glass tumblers or a glass barrel vase etched with Hampshire's crest.

Eighty-one-year-old Joyce Clark, from Basingstoke, was presented with a Good Neighbour Individual Award, for her help in taking elderly people on holiday trips for the last 19 years.

She said: "I simply enjoy doing something to help others. It means a lot to me to hear people say 'thank you'. I have a book full of cards from the neighbours I have helped over the years."

Other winners from the Basingstoke area include Trevor Bayliss, Michael Brennan, Florence Flood, Gerald Merritt, Helen Hiscutt, Janet Morrison, Ted Townsend, Pam Lonsdale and Jim and Val West.

Councillor Ken Thornber, leader of Hampshire County Council, said: "Good deeds too often go unnoticed and this is why it is important that we pay tribute to the efforts of Hampshire's volunteers, especially those who help older residents. I wish to congratulate all of this year's winners for their tremendous efforts.

"It is often the small things that volunteers undertake, such as helping someone to and from the shops, collecting prescriptions, form filling or keeping the garden tidy, that make an enormous difference to the lives of elderly people."

The 2006 awards were organised in connection with Hampshire Voluntary Care Group Advisory Service, Age Concern, Carers Together, Women's Royal Voluntary Service and Club Hampshire.

First published: Wednesday, April 19, 2006