Imposter Creates Song and Dance at Awards Ceremony

Published by New Charter for New Charter Housing Trust Group in Housing and also in Communities

AN awards ceremony celebrating New Charter’s community heroes were gate-crashed by an imposter!

The annual Making a Difference Awards held at the company’s headquarters in Ashton Under Lyne, Greater Manchester on December 9, was attended by around 160 guests who have been working hard to transform their communities over the past year.

Among this year’s winners taking home certificates and shopping vouchers were Ridgehill Arlies Spring and Hague (RASH) community forum for the groups’ popular youth club, and Assheton House residents who created an award winning garden.

But the surprise winner on the night was undoubtedly Edward Cullen, whose outstanding contributions to the community included putting his bins out on the correct day each week and keeping his windows clean.

However, Edward was no real community hero, but a stooge placed in the ceremony by Tenant Participation Officer and Janice Latreche.  Edwards’s impromptu singing was a cue for the waiters to kick off the entertainment, breaking into an energetic homage to boy bands past and present.

New Charter’s Tenant Participation Officer Janice Latreche, who helped organise and judge the awards, said:  “Often voluntary work of the kind carried out by this year’s nominees can go unrecognised, so the awards were a fantastic way of celebrating their efforts.

“It was a truly memorable evening – especially when the waiters unleashed their surprise on the audience!”

Nominations for awards had been flooding in all year, with New Charter staff, community partners like police, and of residents all putting forward their suggestions.

And this year choosing winners was harder than ever – with a record number of entrants, said Executive Director of Neighbourhoods and judge, Tony Powell:  “All of the nominations we received this year were more than deserving winners, so judging was a difficult task. 

“The sheer scale of the response we had just goes to show how many committed individuals and organisations are at work in Tameside.”