The 2012 Awards took place at the Park Hall Hotel in Chorley, see the winners below…
New Social Enterprise of the Year
Sponsored by Pennine LEAP
Winners – The Sewing Rooms
It was as a result of working with women suffering with mental health issues, that the Sewing Rooms initiative was created. No longer passed down from generation to generation, the art of sewing is a dying skill, yet it has been identified that things like wood carving, rug making and sewing are forms of occupational therapy and contribute towards an individual’s happiness.
Small Social Enterprise of the Year
Sponsored by Together Housing Group
Winners – Unique Kidz and Co
Unique Kidz and Co provides specialist services for disabled children and their families. The charity was founded in 2009 by two mums of disabled children unable to find suitable childcare or social activities for their children. Unique Kidz and co now supports over 130 children with a range of disabilities.
Large Social Enterprise of the Year 
Sponsored by Danbro
Winners – Integrate (Preston & Chorley) Ltd
Integrate (Preston & Chorley) Ltd was established in 1983 to provide supported housing for individuals with Learning Difficulties. We continue to do this and also support individuals with Mental Health problems, Physical Disabilities, Autism, Sensory Impairments and Dementia.
We have a long history in Social Enterprise and all of our SE’s have been established to provide better opportunities in life, and the employment market, for people with disabilities.
Volunteer of the Year
Sponsored by Selnet
Winner – Shelley Perry (Breathe Eating Disorder Service )
Award received on behalf of Shelley by Gemma Turner
Shelley Perry is the Clinical Director of Breathe Eating Disorder Service. As a single parent and an ex suffer of an eating disorder herself, she was inspired to create a service focused around the individual and personalised needs of all her clients.
Breathe is now a registered Social Enterprise, offering 1:1, group and Family Therapy to anyone experiencing eating distress or weight management difficulties. We believe that each individual has a purpose for their life, and if they receive the right support and treatment, they can be released from the illness and can flourish.
Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year
Sponsored by Ingeus
Winner – Jonathan Miles Wilson (Shabby2Chic CIC)
Jonathan Miles Wilson, who is just 23 years old is an inspirational Volunteer who devotes absolutely all of his spare time and more to the cause at Shabby2Chic CIC. Dealing with adversity in his personal life he channels his energy and passion in helping others. He achieves outstanding results helping young people who have learning difficulties, whilst achieving his main endeavour to protect the environment. We feel that it should be recognised that Jonathan has recently been awarded an ASDAN qualification for Volunteering.
Environmental Champion of the Year
Sponsored by Selnet
Winners – SAMS (Scrap Art Material Store)
SAMS (Scrap Art Material Store) is a not for profit community enterprise, who’s aim is to recycle clean, non-toxic surplus materials from local business, that would normally end up in a landfill site. We combine a growing concern for the environment with a financial benefit for many companies. Each day, industry throws away tonnes of waste. And every day, children and other community groups need tons of materials for play and other creative activities. SAMS collects these materials and sort and display them in our premises – which is open to members that include; schools, playgroups, community organisations, amateur dramatic groups, nurseries etc – the company, the community and the environment benefit.
Excellence in Training
Sponsored by Selnet
Winners – Shabby2chic CIC
Shabby2Chic CIC is a unique and environmentally creative experience. Through our passion for recycling, we have founded a CIC based on the rescue of unwanted furniture headed for our landfills. We restore, up cycle, improve, and ultimately reinvent Bespoke. We believe that our ethos is inspirational and can be shared with individuals and groups across all walks of life. Young and old can appreciate the need for reducing the throwaway society we live in. We hope we can provide a practical but small contribution to this quest.
Most Effective Partnership
Sponsored by The Key Fund
Winners – Bulky Waste Collectors CIC
Bulky Waste Collectors is a legal partnership between two established furniture reuse and training organisations, Helping Hand of Blackpool and Refurb (Wyre and Fylde) Ltd of Fleetwood. Both organisations have established excellent reputations in service delivery and supporting local people in need by supplying low cost furniture and providing training, qualifications and employment to local marginalised people. They came together to access new opportunities in partnership and have won two contracts since April 2012!
Long Service Recognition 
Sponsored by Social Enterprise North West
Winner – Tony Carr (Social Enterprise Solutions CIC)
Tony Carr is one of the cornerstones of Blackpool’s civil society. He is often associated with Social Enterprise Solutions CIC where he leads the team on an array of social enterprise programmes.
Over the years, he co-founded and became chair and board member of The Blackpool Town Centre Forum Ltd. establishing the Town Centre Management initiative, helped to initiative small-scale community radio in the UK that would benefit local people, qualified as a volunteer adviser for the Citizens Advice Bureau where he helped voluntarily for a number of years and attained membership of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy as a qualified Counsellor in 2005. He is now a chartered business adviser specialising in social enterprise.
2012 Social Enterprise Champion
Winner – Peter Cousins MBE of Brighter Future Workshop
For the past 15 years, following his enforced retirement due to disability, Peter Cousins has dedicated every day of his life to improving the opportunities and life-chances for local disabled people, both young and old, often living in deprived communities and confined to the margins of society. As a self-motivated, independent-minded social entrepreneur and innovator, Peter has founded and built successful and sustainable social enterprises aimed at fulfilling the needs of the disabled community. His latest and most successful venture, the Skelmersdale-based Brighter Future Workshop, provides unique vocational training and personal development opportunities for young people with physical and learning disabilities (as well as disadvantaged young people), coupled with the recycling and re-sale of thousands of items of donated and discarded mobility equipment to people most-in-need. Peter was awarded the MBE in 2008 in recognition of his significant contribution to the disabled community, and the Brighter Future Workshop itself was honoured in 2011 with the Queens Award for Enterprise (for Outstanding Achievements in Sustainable Development).
The 2012 Enterprise in Society Awards were sponsored by…
