This year’s Award winners are a credit to their families and local communities – a real inspiration to other young people across the country. Each group has taken positive action to tackle problems faced by members of their communities. We should all be as determined as they are to take positive steps to improve our communities.

Frances Lawrence

2010 Winners:

Aik Saath, Slough
Aik Saath, which means ‘Together as one’ in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu, is a group of young people working together to build peace within the Asian communities of Slough. They tackle racism and conflict through peer-led training and facilitation.

Aldbourne CAN, Wiltshire
Aldbourne Youth Council transformed their village’s old public toilets into a welcoming internet café for the community. These young people are bringing generations together, taking responsibility, and creating an inspiring model that they hope others will adopt.

Back to the Future, Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland
A film project by young people from Carrickfergus YMCA and PAKT looking back at the loyalist and para-military history of their estate through teenagers’ eyes, and forward to building an inclusive, shared future for everyone in Northern Ireland.

Bikes2Gambia, Hackney, London
Hackney’s Volunteer Police Cadets are steering clear of involvement in crime and gangs, developing skills and helping others in their own communities and further afield, through repairing bicycles to send to Gambian orphanages, sports coaching and running activities for local young people.

Forsythia Youth Project, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales
These young people refuse to be written off by their postcode, getting involved in volunteering, setting up a community gym and taking part in positive activities. They are proving that given respect and opportunities, every young person is capable of greatness.

Haggeye, Scotland
Haggeye is the forum for blind and partially sighted young people across Scotland. Working together they campaign, consult and make a difference, improving accessibility of services. Through this work they are flourishing as independent, confident young leaders.

Lives not Knives, Croydon
The Lives not Knives team are young people who have experienced friends killed or injured by knife crime. Passionate about stopping their younger peers getting involved, they work hard campaigning, training peer mentors, and taking their roadshow to schools.

SW!TCH ID, Dagenham
Challenging negative perceptions and transforming local public opinion of young people into something positive. SW!TCH ID tackle local issues, engage the community and organise activities such as litterpicking flashmobs, a community art show and family fun days.

Special Commendation Supported by Fearless
Trick or Treat, Wakefield
A young theatre group who responded positively to the tragic murder of a local teenager by performing and running workshops in schools to get across the impact of violent crime and hopefully prevent similar attacks.

Click through on the names to read more information about each of these fantastic groups of young people and to watch a short film about each of them. We hope you find them as uplifting and inspiring as our judging panels did.

We’re busy celebrating with these deserving young people at a star studded ceremony at BAFTA today. Check back in a few days to find out how the party went.