The Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire has hosted a virtual awards ceremony to celebrate the achievements of the remarkable 16 young people who made it through as 2020 finalists.
Congratulations go to Tyler Hodgkinson, who received the top prize of the evening becoming the Lord-Lieutenant’s Young Person of the Year 2020.
As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the ‘red carpet’ awards evening and dinner, traditionally hosted by the Lord-Lieutenant, Mike Kapur OBE, had to be postponed and moved online.
The four finalists shortlisted in each of the four categories were recognised as remarkable examples of dedication, going above and beyond to help others and for their outstanding personal achievements.
The category winners were:
Young Braveheart of the Year (and overall Young Person of the Year) - Tyler Hodgkinson is 16 years old and lives in Coalville and attends King Edward VII High School in Coalville.
Young Artist of the Year - Isaac Hurst is 13 years old and attends the Wigston Academy.
Young Leader of the Year - Lauren Duguid, 18, lives in Fleckney and attends Beauchamp College in Oadby.
Young Volunteer of the Year - Kristian Brocksopp, 17, lives in Ratcliffe on the Wreake and attends Ratcliffe College.
These four young people were all considered for the overall award of the Lord-Lieutenant’s Young Person of the Year, which went to Tyler Hodgkinson.
I have the honour of meeting some extraordinary young people and seeing some truly humbling examples of volunteering, community engagement, and personal achievements, requiring dedication and commitment of the highest order.
It is a privilege for me to be able to recognise and reward our young people this evening. Their bravery, creativity, strength of spirit and selflessness should be an inspiration to us all in Leicester and Leicestershire.
Too often the achievements of young people go unnoticed by the wider community and I hope that these awards will continue to showcase some of the remarkable work going on across Leicester and Leicestershire that deserves recognition.
Person:Mike Kapur, Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire
The awards are sponsored by a variety of organisations offering services to young people, including Leicestershire County and Leicester City Councils, together with universities and the business community, and seek to identify and reward the very best examples of achievement by young people locally.
In recognition of the impact the Covid-19 pandemic has had on lives and communities, there will be special category for the 2021 awards to showcase the positive and inspiring young people who made a difference to their local communities during these difficult times.
About the Lord-Lieutenant
The Lord-Lieutenant is The Queen’s representative in the county. The current Lord Lieutenant is Michael Kapur OBE.
About the awards scheme
A panel of judges which included young people, chaired by the Lord-Lieutenant, considered all nominations meeting the criteria for the award. The judges shortlisted four young finalists in each category of the award.
The finalists each received a framed certificate together with a prize. Category winners each receive a prize to the value of £500. The overall Lord-Lieutenant’s Young Person of the Year also receives a special trophy.
Over 50 nominations were received for this year’s Lord-Lieutenant’s awards.
The event was held last week (November 17) and streamed live on the Leicestershire Lieutenancy channel
About the category winners
Young Braveheart of the Year (and overall Young Person of the Year) - Tyler Hodgkinson is 16 years old and attend King Edward VII High School in Coalville.
Tyler has been nominated for this award following a remarkable act of bravery and selflessness at the scene of a truly distressing incident.
In January 2019, Sian Ellis, a pupil from Tyler’s school, was fatally injured in a collision with a bus on her way home.
Tyler was one of the first on the scene and rang 999. The operator asked him to check the child’s pulse and due to Tyler’s training from the Army and Police cadets, he had the skills to do this. Unfortunately, he was aware that there was nothing more he could do for Sian, but chose to stay by her until a school staff member arrived and took over. Remarkably, Tyler then took it upon himself to help calm the bus driver and other students in what were extreme circumstances.
Understandably, the months following were difficult for Tyler, but he has handled the impact that the accident had on him with strength and resilience. A dedicated Police cadet, Tyler often puts himself forward to speak in front of the school and within the community to raise awareness of certain issues including knife crime, drug safety and first aid.
The way that this young man has handled the past few months is not only inspiring, but also a reflection of his strong, caring character. In the words of his nominator, “Tyler never complains about any task that is put forward to him and is always willing to volunteer his time to better the lives of others.”
Young Artist of the Year - Isaac Hurst is 13 years old and attends the Wig
At only 13, he has an exceptionally advanced technique in storytelling. In the last year he has written and directed his first short film called “Rockface” which looks at how creating a positive online presence can help young people defeat bullying.
Isaac spent three months getting the script to the standard he wanted it at, showing great dedication to create seven drafts before creating the shot list and storyboards for the film.
He directed the actors and crew during film production which lasted three days before spending eight weeks editing the film.
‘Rockface’ has had a profound impact on Isaac’s peers and teachers, as well as youth workers who have viewed the film and commended its excellent storytelling
Young Leader of the Year - Lauren Duguid, 18, lives in Fleckney and attends Beauchamp College in Oadby.
Starting her journey as a young leader by sitting on the Youth Parliament, Lauren was then elected to act as a Youth Steering Group Member, representing the East Midlands.
The Steering Group was put together by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to review the Government’s environment and climate change policy. Lauren was involved by engaging with young people across the country and consulting with the Government Departments to review the government’s 25-year environment plan.
Lauren went on to co-ordinate the production of a report on climate change, which involved receiving submissions from the other eight regional representatives of the Youth Steering Group and editing them together into the full report. This was submitted to ministers in September and the government are currently considering their response.
Lauren has campaigned tirelessly to encourage the young people of Leicestershire to vote in the UKYP’s Make Your Mark ballot in support of the campaign to protect the environment. Lauren ensured ballots were circulated to all secondary schools in the County as well as youth and community groups.
In Leicestershire, 9,419 young people participated, and Lauren collected 4,976 - securing the 11th highest number of votes nationally! Following this, at the UKYP House of Commons debate in November she was invited to speak about the environment and climate change, which she did with passion and integrity.
Lauren has contributed to local projects and had a key role in putting together a showcase event for Leicestershire’s Youth Council’s work on knife crime, curriculum for life, period poverty, homelessness and mental health. She also finds the time to sit as a student governor at her college.
There is no doubt that Lauren’s passion and commitment to championing the voice of her peers is having a profound impact, and I’m sure, inspiring many others around her.
Young Volunteer of the Year - Kristian Brocksopp, 17, lives in Ratcliffe on the Wreake and attends Ratcliffe College.
Over the past five years, Kristian has become a committed and passionate volunteer at Takeover Radio, dedicating countless hours of his time to the station in a number of areas.
When the founder of Takeover Radio, Graham Coley, sadly passed away in 2018, Kristian became the training manager at the station. This voluntary role involves running a variety of courses for children to help them learn how to write and produce their own shows, and how to operate the technical equipment. His infectious enthusiasm and dedication is a fantastic example to the young people that he coaches, and certainly helps to secure the future of the station.
In addition to his training role, Kristian provides technical support to presenters, sets up the technical equipment for outside broadcasts and presents on live radio. Notably, Kristian has also become heavily involved in fundraising and gives up many hours of his time to put on events to raise money to keep the station operating.
Kristian successfully set up a broadcasting deal which has resulted in a small, yet consistent income which is vitally important for the continued running Takeover Radio. His nominators have described him as an invaluable asset to the station with an abundance of enthusiasm that has truly helped the station to survive and develop.
Kristian also manages to volunteer as a football referee, mentor to trainee referees and is the youngest referee secretary in the county. Kristian manages to balance all this with also doing his A-Levels at school and helping to organise school events and fundraisers, often getting involved in the behind the scenes and technical roles.
Kristian has had a huge impact on those around him, whether that be at school, on the football pitch, or at Takeover Radio and is a highly deserving finalist for the Lord-Lieutenant’s Award.