Tommy Higson named Volunteer of the Year at North West Canal Volunteering Awards

Tommy Higson, from Rochdale, a lead volunteer with the Canal & River Trust, has been named Volunteer of the Year at the North West Canal Volunteering Awards.

The awards celebrate volunteer excellence and, to mark a decade of charitable care, this year include an extra category to recognise a volunteer in each region who has been volunteering with the Canal & River Trust since its inception.

Awards are being given to teams and individuals across the Canal & River Trust’s network of waterways and reflect the fantastic range of volunteering that takes place.
 

Read more: Canal towpath repaired by volunteersPublished: 28 September 2022

Tommy was presented with the award for his work on the Rochdale Green Recovery Project, whilst volunteer Jon Stopp won the Ten Year Top Volunteer Award for his work on the Rochdale Canal.

 

 

 

Gary Wilkinson, volunteer team leader who has worked with Tommy, described how volunteering had massively improved his confidence and job prospects.

He said: “Tommy has shown how spending time by water can really improve your wellbeing – he has developed into a confident young man through his volunteer journey. Tommy cares about the trust, our people, customers and the nature that surrounds our waterways. He always goes the extra mile to support others.”

Daniel Greenhalgh, North West director at Canal & River Trust, said: “Our volunteers make a tremendous contribution to the North West waterways, bringing their skills, enthusiasm and experience to a vast array of activities and tasks and enabling us to keep the canals open and available for people to use and enjoy.

“These awards showcase the range of their talents and celebrate their enthusiasm, passion and sheer hard work. They are an inspiration and I offer my congratulations to them all.”

For more information about the work of the Canal & River Trust, including how you can volunteer or donate, visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk