The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service now open to nominations

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service is "the MBE for volunteer groups".

Nominations for the 2011 Award should be received by 30 September 2010.

If you know of outstanding voluntary work or have benefited from a voluntary group’s activity, you should nominate them now. Successful groups will be announced on 2 June 2011.

Sixty-eight groups in London have received the prestigious National Honour since its creation in 2002, after being nominated by friends, family, beneficiaries or a member of the public.

The Office for Civil Society (OCS) in the Cabinet Office needs you to nominate outstanding local voluntary groups for next year’s Award.

See more information and download a nomination form or telephone 020 7781 2397 for more information.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, Main Award Committee Chair and former broadcast journalist Martyn Lewis CBE said,

"There are millions of people volunteering or involved with charity work across the UK and it’s those we are calling on to make nominations for their region. The voluntary sector is playing an even bigger part in our lives and is a vital contributor to today’s society so it’s only right that voluntary groups giving freely of their time should be recognised at the highest level."