Surrey Choices Celebrates Disabled and Neurodivergent people and Partners at their Celebrating Success Awards 2024

Surrey Choices Celebrates Disabled and Neurodivergent people and Partners at their Celebrating Success Awards 2024

On Wednesday 15 May 2024 Surrey Choices celebrated disabled and neurodivergent people and partners at their annual Celebrating Success Awards at Denbies Wine Estate, Dorking. Family, friends and colleagues came together to recognise this year’s winners in beautiful surroundings.  

Celebrating Success

The Celebrating Success Awards highlight the achievements of people supported by Surrey Choices. The judging panel comprised colleagues from across Surrey Choices’ services and the winners from the 2023 awards. They were greatly impressed by how each of the winners had overcome challenges, achieved new goals and were inspired by the way they demonstrated the values we uphold at Surrey Choices.  

The awards also recognised employers and organisations Surrey Choices works with in the community who have created supportive and inclusive environments, where the winners and many others have improved their skills and wellbeing. 

Winners 

Winners were recognised in one of four award categories: Health and Wellbeing, Independent Living and Life Skills, Friends Relationships and Communities, and Employment, Volunteering and Vocational Learning. 

Kimberley was one of the winners for the Independent Living and Life Skills Award. She has turned her life around with the support of her Shared Lives family. Despite past challenges, she has now found happiness, stability and security and this sense of belonging has not only boosted her confidence but also deepened her understanding of herself, paving the way for personal growth and fulfilment. She has embraced new opportunities and challenges such as attending college, where she has thrived academically and completed a functional skills course in English, . 

Patricia, Shared Lives Carer said: “My philosophy on Shared Lives is what it’s called. You’re sharing your life with somebody”  

The awards also recognise partners that Surrey Choices work with. Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals won our Working in Partnership with Employers Award. Rebecca, one of Surrey Choices’ volunteers needed extra space to work due to the electric wheelchair she needs to support her mobility, and reasonable adjustments were necessary on site. The Head of Volunteering at the hospital identified a suitable office space that could accommodate her safely whilst ensuring she had the necessary support from staff to maintain productivity. 

The hospital’s willingness to accommodate and provide opportunities to individuals from diverse backgrounds underscores their commitment to inclusivity and community support. 

You can watch all the winners on the Surrey Choices YouTube channel 

Reaction  

Martin Farrow, Managing Director of Surrey Choices, closed the event with a speech where he expressed his feelings about what he had heard and seen: 

“These outcomes make me very proud of our teams, but we know that whilst we can create the environment to support our ethos of Every Life, Every Chance, it is the people we support who make great things happen, whether that be a large or a small thing, it is a victory for human spirit, which in turn provides all of us at Surrey Choices with daily inspiration and motivation. We have heard so many inspiring outcomes for the people we support”