New Year Honours for Reading Community Activists
by Hazel Broad (Deputy Director)
7 January 2009
Congratulations to Dee Park’s Norma Sinclair and Pat Bird from Hexham Road, who have both been awarded MBEs in the 2009 New Year Honours, following many years sterling service to their local communities.
Pat Bird has long been campaigning for improved community facilities on Hexham Road. She helped form the community association in 1984, eventually leading to the opening of a brand new centre in 1996 and much more besides, including running a club for people with learning disabilities.
Last year RVA was commissioned to manage a community development project in Dee Park and support residents through the local regeneration programme, helping to build the capacity of the community and develop community initiatives. The project has only reached this stage due to years of effort by a committed band of local residents, among them Norma Sinclair, who has been a tireless campaigner and chair of the Community Regeneration Action Group.
Our recent experience of partnering work on the ground in Dee Park makes us especially pleased that the efforts of people like Norma and Pat have been recognised in such a public way and that contributions like theirs are increasingly valued for the real difference they can make.
Follow the links to read all about Norma and Pat and their awards:
www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2042032_norma_sinclair_mbe
www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2042033_pat_bird_mbe
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