Burnley Rounders Club, which has got hundreds of local women up and on the pitch, has been honoured at this year’s Lancashire Sports Awards.
The club has been named the Community Club of the Year at the ceremony, which brought together the county’s sporting stars to celebrate their achievements and showcase best practice.
Janet Roundell, Burnley Leisure’s sport and play development officer and coordinator for the Rounders Club, said: “We’re delighted to receive the trophy for the best community club of the year.
“The award is the perfect round-up of the fantastic year we had. We managed to achieve not only national but also international success. The club and one of its star players were part of the This Girl Can campaign and with the support of local players we also set a new Guinness World Record for the largest game of rounders.”
At the awards, there were 83 finalists from across Lancashire who battled it out over nine categories including Coach of the Year, Adult Volunteer of the Year, Service to Disability Sport, Secondary School of the Year, Young Achiever of the Year, Service to Disability Sport, and Lifetime Achievement – Commitment to Sport.
Burnley’s star volunteer Mel Mitchell was highly commended in the Young Volunteer of the Year section for her support to Burnley Leisure in encouraging more people to take up sport.
Holy Trinity Primary School, which was named the top primary school in Burnley Community Sports Awards 2016, has also picked up a highly commended award in the Primary School of the Year category.
The awards, now in their 15th year, are hosted by Lancashire Sport Partnership (LSP), an organisation which works to improve health and wellbeing across the county by encouraging active lifestyles.
They aim to pay tribute to those, young and old, that show dedication to perform at the highest level or those who work tirelessly to support individuals or clubs week in, week out, for the love of sport.
Adrian Leather, chief executive of Lancashire Sport Partnership (LSP), said: “These awards exist to recognise and reward the individuals, clubs and organisations which work tirelessly to ensure that people can both get involved and participate in sport.
“This year’s sporting calendar has been pretty packed with the Euros, Rugby Championship, Wimbledon and the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which has culminated in a lot of interest in sport and our partners have reported increased enquiries and participation.
“As a supporter of any initiative or event that inspires people to be more active, we’re delighted to have recognised and rewarded the very people and clubs at the backbone of the county’s sports scene at this year’s Lancashire Sports Awards.“
Nominations for Burnley Community Sports Awards 2017 will open in January.
Registration for the women’s summer rounders leagues will start next week. For more information and to sign up, please contact Janet on 01282 477167 or email JRoundell@burnley.gov.uk.