Service to Todmorden 2023 – Award Citations
Read the award citations for this 2023 Service to Todmorden Award Winners below. The citations were read by Town Mayor, Councillor Tyler Hanley at our Annual Meeting and Mayor Making on the night of 17 May 2023.
David Payne – Individual Service to Todmorden Award Winner 2023
This years’ Individual Service to Todmorden Award is presented to David Payne for his long and outstanding service as a Group Scout Leader within Todmorden.
I am sad to say that David passed away in April, but we are honoured to have members of his family with us this evening to accept his award.
David was involved in scouting throughout his life and made a great contribution to our community as a scout leader for over 40 years.
Generations of the same families have benefited from opportunities and experiences provided by David throughout their formative years, from Beavers aged 6 to Explorer Scouts aged 18.
David devoted thousands of hours, freely and enthusiastically, to organising meetings, events, expeditions and camps; to delivering experiences, adventures and activities that have created lifelong memories for the young people in his care.
David believed that scouting should be accessible and affordable for all and always ensured that the cost of activities and camps were within reach. As Treasurer for the group David arranged very discreet support for those needing it most, maintaining free and subsidised places, uniforms and camp costs.
In his drive to make the opportunities and benefits of scouting available to all, when other local scout groups, such as Walsden, closed due to lack of volunteers, David took on those Cubs and Scouts allowing them to continue scouting.
He was District Secretary of the Pennine Calder Scout District and a member of the Blakedean Committee which runs the Blakedean Scout Hostel, a facility regularly used by Todmorden Cubs, Scouts and Explorers and many other scout and youth groups.
During the Covid pandemic, amidst the lockdown, growing concerns for the mental health of young people and the sad loss of his wife, David continued to coordinate activities for group members that could be completed during lockdown with their families. As soon as the rules allowed, he began organising outdoor meetings for small groups on weeknights and in all weathers.
During his time as Scout Leader in Todmorden, David maintained a group which grew to be one of the largest in the district. He also ensured that his legacy would continue by encouraging and developing the next generation of leaders from within the group. It was these leaders, along with many past and present members of the Calder Valley Explorer Scout Unit, who nominated David for this extremely well-deserved award.
I wish we could have honoured David in person today but I am very pleased to present this award certificate to David’s daughter Rachel and his two sons Paul and Jamie who are here tonight.
Rachel, Paul and Jamie please accept this award with pride on behalf of your father who touched so many lives and was a truly outstanding member of our community.
Disability Support Calderdale – Organisations Service to Todmorden Award Winner 2023
This year, the Organisations Service to Todmorden Award goes to Disability Support Calderdale.
Disability Support Calderdale has worked in, and for, the people of Todmorden for over 8 years.
Their remit extends across the borough, but in the last 5 years the majority of their work has been carried out within Todmorden.
The team at DSC offer advocacy and support for those with disabilities, long term health conditions and mental health issues.
The main focus of their work is around benefits. The team assist service users with the completion of complex forms and appeals for Personal Independence Payments, Universal Credit, Work Capability Assessments, Employment Support Allowance, Pension Credit, Attendance Allowance and Carer’s Allowance.
In the past 4 consecutive years the team has re-couped over £1.2 million pounds for their service users and just over half of this total amount has gone to people living in Todmorden.
They are constantly busy with forms and phone calls. I am told that in the last 2 years alone they have received over 5,500 phone calls and drop-in appointments.
In Todmorden DSC runs drop-in sessions at the Health Centre and at the Food Bank. They also run an art project at Todmorden College which I hear is having a very positive impact on people’s mental health and wellbeing.
In the near future they will be offering walking sessions to promote wellbeing, especially, but not exclusively, to help those struggling with their mental health and isolation, giving a chance for people to socialise, make new friends, get active and be in the fresh air.
The value and benefit that DSC has brought to thousands of people across Calderdale, and particularly within Todmorden cannot be overstated.
They have been recognised many times for their incredible work, not least in 2022 when they received the prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest honour given to volunteer groups in the UK.
However, perhaps the highest accolades they receive come from their service users:
“DSC has literally saved my life”
“I could never have done this without DSC’s help”
“DSC have taken all my stress and anxiety away”.
These are just a few examples of the feedback the team regularly receive from the people they help.
I am delighted to add to these accolades with this Service to Todmorden Award.
Here to accept the award on behalf of the whole team are David Naylor and Sara Naylor.
David and Sara, I am pleased to present you with this award certificate, which I hope you will take back to your team with my gratitude and the gratitude of Todmorden Town Council.