Lord Levy, CSV's President, presided over the ceremony, which was attended Pete Waterman and Michael Howard amongst other celebrities and MPs, plus volunteers and national charities who support and benefit from CSV Make a Difference Day.

Organised by CSV (Community Service Volunteers) and supported by Barclays community investment programme, CSV Make a Difference Day is now the UK's biggest day of 'hands on' volunteering - asking everyone to 'give time not money' for just one day to make a real difference to their communities.

A record-breaking 88,000 people took part in 2003, renovating children's hospices, turning wastelands into parks, making public areas more accessible for disabled people, bridging cultural divides and tackling bullying.

An Awards Panel of representatives from the media, commercial and voluntary sectors chose the winners, who were recognised for the exceptional ways they gave their time to improve the lives of others in their community on CSV Make a Difference Day 2003.


Winners included:

The Cinnamon Trust, West Midlands - Most Innovative Activity
Uniting dogs and owners: The Cinnamon Trust, which enables terminally ill people and elderly people to stay with their pets, held a fun dog show to recruit new volunteers. Their event was attended by 200 people and 71 dogs, with awards for the "waggiest tail", "prettiest bitch" and "dog with the most appealing eyes".

Trafalgar Community Garden Group, South Yorkshire - Most Inclusive Activity
Tackling drugs in the community: An entire community in Doncaster came together to transform a piece of wasteland into a community garden. The volunteers wanted to create an area that was free from drugs and would unite different aspects of the community. Local people of all different ages and backgrounds are continuing to work on the garden.

ROYAD, Surrey - Most Heart-Warming Activity
Helping a 'local hero': Residents in Surrey came to the rescue of a neighbour Pat Begley, who herself is a volunteer, after she fell and broke her arm. Volunteers undertook a surprise re-vamp of her house and garden, both in need of great attention, whilst Pat and her daughter were away on holiday.
Manor Health Youth Project, South Yorkshire - Most Exceptional Youth Activity
Putting youth in a better light: young people from an estate in Sheffield wanted to show older people that they were not all "vandals, thieves and druggies", following a drug-related murder in the community. They created an intergenerational book, bringing older and younger people together and restoring trust within the community.

Scope, Islington - Most Outstanding Charity Partner Activity
Tackling disability travel in the capital: Disabled and non-disabled volunteers raised awareness of the problems facing disabled people travelling in London. Their efforts resulted in an Early Day Motion in parliament.

Elizabeth Salter, the CSV Make a Difference Day campaign manager said: "The Awards showcased the fantastic work that took place across the UK for CSV Make a Difference Day 2003. All the Awards guests were visibly impressed with the powerful impact the Award nominees have had on their communities - and these were just 24 activities out of 4,600 which took place on the day!"

This year CSV Make a Difference Day with Barclays takes place on Saturday 30 October and promises to be the biggest and best yet. To find out more about taking part, call free on 0800 284 533 or visit www.csv.org.uk/difference .

ENDS


Notes for editors

1. CSV (Community Service Volunteers) is the UK's leading volunteering organisation and creates opportunities for people to play an active part in the life of their community through volunteering, training and community action. Each year 129,000 people give 3.8 million hours of their time as volunteers through CSV.

2. Barclays PLC actively encourages employee involvement through its Employee Volunteering grant giving, Volunteer 2day time giving and £ for £ match-funding schemes, as well as encouraging the wider public to do the same through supporting flagship projects such as CSV Make a Difference Day and Barclays SiteSavers.

3. "We actively encourage our employees to give their time and effort to local charities, urban regeneration, fundraising and all forms of volunteering. We are proud of their efforts and not a little humbled by them." Matt Barrett, Group Chief Executive.

4. Around 20,000 Barclays employees from around the world took part in community activities in 2003. Nearly 7,500 Barclays employees took part in Make a Difference Day activities alone, including staff in Africa and Spain. Volunteering projects ranged from mentoring, clearing beaches, serving meals in hostels for homeless people to gardening, painting and decorating.

5. Barclays takes its social and environmental responsibilities seriously, supporting social and financial inclusion both nationally and at grass roots level to make a real and lasting difference to the community. In 2002 the bank continued to be one of the UK's top corporate contributors, making a global commitment of £32m and one in four Barclays employees volunteered for their local communities.

For further information see social responsibility at http://www.barclays.com
Media enquiries contact: Moya Galal, Group PR Manager, Barclays PLC on 020 7699 4114