Student of the Year Awards recognise ‘ability and determination’ of young people

STUDENT of the Year awards recognised the ‘ability and determination’ of pupils across Saddleworth and Oldham.

The annual awards, presented by the Rotary Club of Oldham, took place on May 10 in the Council Chamber at the Civic Centre in the presence of the Mayor of Oldham Cllr Elaine Garry and her consort Cllr Graham Shuttleworth.

The winners are:

  • Oldham Student of the Year 16+: Scarlet Flood, Oldham Hulme Grammar School
  • Oldham Student of the Year 11-16 years: Louie Wild, Saddleworth School
  • Runner up 16+: Catherine Burke, Oldham Hulme Grammar School
  • Runner up 11-16 years: Benjamin Greenwood, Crompton House School
  • The Rotary Club made a Special Award to Awesta Yaftaly, of the Blue Coat School.

Neil Taylor, President of the Rotary Club of Oldham, gave a synopsis of Rotary locally and internationally and thanked the nominees, schools, parents and guardians for taking part in this year’s awards.

He said: “I am proud to be involved in the Awards and was amazed at the continued high standards of nominations and the wide variety of service being shown by students.

“The nominations reflected the ability and determination of young people to overcome the challenges presented to them and set examples of fortitude and leadership.

“The nominations received reflected the way young people have responded to the needs of communities, the needs of families and also the needs of fellow students.

“The organizing committee and the judging panel of Rotarians were faced with an extremely challenging number of nominations from schools, academies and colleges from across the borough and had difficult decisions to make.”

The Mayor said she was delighted and proud to present the awards, which recognise the outstanding contribution young people give to their school, local community and family.

She thanked and congratulated each nominee for their dedication and commitment which she saw as a very encouraging sign for the town.

This year the Rotary Club of Oldham has fully sponsored the awards, including all the prizes and Neil said he was very grateful for the support of all the members.

All the winning students were presented with Nomination Certificates and the Winners and Runners-up certificates, a personal shield and vouchers.

The Club President and the Mayor also presented all nominated students with a Nominee Certificate.

The Rotary Club would like to thank staff of all participating schools, academies and colleges for their support and hope to continue with the awards and encourage and acknowledge the tremendous service young people give to Oldham.