CHARITIES SHINE IN A STAR STUDDED AWARD EVENING IN LONDON

The gorgeous model and Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez attended the second Asian Voice Charity Awards, held at the Hilton Park Lane on Friday 19 May, hosted by the Asian Voice newsweekly. Jacqueline received the International Humanitarian Award and speaking on the stage she said, “I would like to thank Habitat for Humanity and receive this award on behalf of them. Working with them for the last 5 years has really opened my eyes and has given me the opportunity to help so many people live with dignity, by giving them homes to live in. I work in an industry where my co-stars are called heroes, but to me you guys are the real heroes.”

Anxiety UK won the Charity of the Year in this year's Asian Voice Charity Awards. Anxiety UK was established in 1970, by an individual with personal experience of agoraphobia, for those affected by anxiety disorders.

The Asian Voice Charity Awards powered by Charity Clarity are not only about charities which seek to solve the most pressing social issues of our time both in Britain and globally, but also for those that seek to innovate and strive for excellence and whose success is judged by their end results. These awards are meant for rewarding those organisations, who are changing things for the better.

Famous author Lord Jeffrey Archer received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his years of services to different charities in the UK. Not only he has supported many charities and foundations himself, he has helped many organisations to raise funds for innumerable causes that are close to his heart.

The Chief Guest for the evening was Rt Hon Rob Wilson, who is the Under Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport since 2016. His post concerns charities, volunteering, social enterprise and the ‘Civil and Big Society' agenda of the UK government. Speaking at the Awards, the Minister said, “We are embarking on a very big period of change, and it is important that we see this opportunity to reshape our country for the better. We want an economy that prospers, and we also want a society where everyone benefits from our successes and where everyone knows that their voice will be heard. We need to build strong bonds within our communities and to fight hard to end injustices, not just injustices related to race, gender or indeed the social class, but also to everyday injustices that see hard working families feeling left behind. As Minister for Civil Society for the last 2 years, I have seen how charities can make a huge difference to our society…

“The contribution of the Asian community to the charity sector is absolutely huge. The concept of Sewa in the Hindu community literally means selfless services and one of their main pillars is charity. I want to personally thank you all for the wonderful contributions you make to the British Society, the work you do and continue to do.”

Anita Chopra, Director of Match Solicitors and Sponsor for the Legal Matters magazine, that was exclusively available at the awards venue for the guests to take away, addressing the the audience said, “Over the past 20 years or so of practising in the area of education law, it has become evident to us that there are many stigmas that exist within certain communities, not least the Asian community, when it comes to dealing with the education of a child that may have special educational needs or indeed where a student may be facing disciplinary issues or academic failure at university. There are also many battles fought year on year when it comes to obtaining admission to a state school, or indeed withdrawing a child from an independent school. As experts in this area of the law, we have fought tirelessly and with diligence for each and every client that has crossed our threshold.

“Education law is a niche area of law. There are many acts of parliament that regulate the provision of education in this country. There are rules and regulations that universities and colleges must comply with. I remember when I was at school and then university (which I would like to think was not so long ago), the thought of challenging a lecturer or professor was unheard of. But the world has changed. Parents and students see themselves more and more as consumers. Good education is getting more and more expensive and individuals expect a much higher service standard than ever before. At Match Solicitors we work hard to address this rebalancing of the relationship between the service provider and the service user.

“In a meritocratic society education takes on a value like never before. A good education opens doors, leads young people up pathways that have the capacity not only to change their standard of living but the standard of living of the entire family and sometimes, the entire social setting from which they come.

“We are delighted to have had the opportunity to work with Asian Voice to spread the word on education law...”

Subhash Thakrar, from the Judging panel said: “The Asian Voice Charity Awards was a real success for the 2^nd year running. It is one of a few awards programme where the winners not only get a nice trophy but a whole bundle of benefits in addition. These include, marketing support, consulting, web site enhancement, training workshop and others. Asian Voice not only supports and recognises charities and their good work but also enables them to advance further. The technical partner, Charity Clarity has played a significant role in evaluating each applicant using its independent evaluation tool and producing particular score rating. Charity Clarity enables donors to check out the score of particular charities before he or she decides to donate. This is a free service. Charities can also use Charity Clarity to obtain a rating in order to better market themselves or to find out areas of improvement so that they become more attractive to donors.”

CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice and Chairman of the Asian Voice Charity Awards said, “Innumerable people are engaged in Charitable work and Charitable organisations. Some are doing extremely beneficial work both professionally and ethically. Some needs to develop both in structure and performances. Charity Clarity has developed a very effective and objective monitoring. In association with Charity Clarity, the Asian Voice Charity Awards is one more step forward to our services for our readers and community.”

The compere for the evening was super model and Bollywood actor Elena Fernandez.

Entertainment was provided by Jack and Joel - Innovative Pop Duo,A K Bollywood Dance and Adagio Acro Duo.

The full list of this year's winners are as below: