Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards Chairman Peter McCormick OBE launched the call for nominations with 2025 Unsung Hero Will Renton and his sister, Ellie, who is a grant recipient.
Ten previous winners were among the guests for the launch of the 32nd Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards last night (14 May).
They joined sponsors, grant recipients and supporters to open nominations for the
Awards at the West Park Hotel in Harrogate.
The Awards celebrate the achievements of young people from across the Yorkshire and Humber region and are sponsored by McCormicks Solicitors of Harrogate.
Among the winners on hand to launch the Awards were last year’s Unsung Hero Will Renton who is achieving outstanding academic results while acting as a carer for his younger sister Ellie, who has Spinal Muscular Atrophy and is a grant recipient from the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.
They were joined by 1998 Youngster of the Year India Farmer and Katie Gill who won Achievement in Management and Enterprise in 2019, both of whom are ambassadors for the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation.
There were also Macy and Maya, two of the children of the late Rugby League Motor Neurone Disease fundraiser and campaigner Rob Burrow, who won the Award for Unsung Heroes in 2024.
The Awards’ many supporters present included winners of the Martin Gerrard Award. Chris Blundell, who hosted the event at the West Park Hotel on behalf of the Foundation, was joined by Eddie Cray, Simon Nabarro, Christine Talbot and Duncan Wood.
Foundation and Awards Chairman Peter McCormick OBE said: “It was wonderful to see so many of our previous winners at the event and their attendance underlines what winning means to the young people we recognise every year.
“We are indebted to them all and to our sponsors, most of whom have been with us for many years. Without them this celebration of young people could not happen.”
The Awards are open to anyone aged under 35 who was born, lives or works in Yorkshire. They can be famous or completely unknown outside their own community as long as they have achieved something special, whether attaining success or overcoming adversity.
The winners will be announced at the Awards Dinner at the Leeds United Centenary Pavilion on Thursday 26 November.
The proceeds of the annual dinner are used by the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation to make grants to young people and organisations supporting in the region, with the total now standing at more than £1.5 million.
There are eight categories as follows:
- Personality of the Year (sponsored by Rudding Park)
- Youngster of the Year (Nabarro McAllister)
- Unsung Hero (Jamboree Entertainment)
- Achievement in the Arts (HACS Construction)
- Achievement in Education (Anonymous)
- Achievement in Management and Enterprise (The CHR Group)
- Achievement in Sport (Leeds United Football Club)
- The Martin Gerrard Award (GMI Property)
Nominations can be made by visiting www.yorkshireyoungachievers.co.uk or by telephoning Sonia Jones on 01423 530630 to request a nomination form. The deadline for nominations is Friday 28 August.