OBV & HSS UK celebrated at the Your UK Parliament Awards 2020
The Your UK Parliament Award 2020 winners have been announced, with two BAME campaigning groups taking home top prizes. Operation Black Vote were awarded the Digital Campaign of the Year award, while Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK were chosen as Partner of the Year.
Digital Campaign of the Year – Operation Black Vote
The Digital Campaign of the Year award is designed to celebrate campaigns or activities that have connected people to democracy through digital engagement.
Operation Black Vote (OBV) exists to ensure there is greater racial justice and equality throughout the UK. They seek to inspire BAME communities to engage with public institutions to address the persistent race inequalities that exist. Their work spans a number of areas including voter registration, lobbying politicians, mentoring schemes and political leadership programmes.
Prior to the general election in December 2019, OBV released a multi-media campaign to encourage UK’s disenfranchised BAME communities to vote. It included quotes from politicians and some prominent artists and activists. They used this media campaign to inform the wider community, especially the young, that if they did not vote they wouldn’t get their voices heard - with others speaking for them. This led to increased political awareness and activism in the community.
Simon Wooley, Director of Operation Black Vote said:
"The whole is always greater than the sum of our parts, particularly when we have such dynamic collaborations. Our goal is always to empower BAME communities and transform our institutions.
“Everyone at OBV feels extremely humbled by the award and by the ongoing collaborations that we have forged with organisations, institutions both civically and politically that help us make a difference in the racial and social equality space.”
Official Partner - Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK
This award celebrates the work of an official UK Parliament Week Partner who has connected people to democracy through UK Parliament Week activities.
Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK (HSS) was established by Hindus who immigrated to the UK.
HSS became a UK Parliament Week Official Partner to ensure their community understand why it is important to engage with UK Parliament and democracy. They designated Dr Harsha Jani to co-ordinate and lead on the UKPW activities.
With 112 chapters spread across the UK, Dr Harsha set up Q&A sessions via conference calls to promote the importance of UK Parliament Week. Setting-up regional WhatsApp groups to manage communications, Dr Harsha worked directly with all regional leads who were responsible for managing the activities.
HSS used their website, newsletters and social media to promote UK Parliament Week and celebrate the activities held during that week. Securing press coverage across the UK as well as India, HSS received support from several MPs, Peers and local council members.
During UK Parliament Week 2019, HSS reached people from ages six to eighty-two – connecting with their community and helping them realise the importance of engaging with the UK Parliament.
Dr Harsha Jani, of HSS UK said:
“Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh is profoundly delighted to have been awarded UK Parliament Week 2020 Official Partner of the year award. For Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK, winning the award endorses the success story of our UK Parliament activities which will have far reaching impact in the Hindu community in learning about democracy, exploring the value of wider participation and taking positive steps to correct under-representation in Parliament.”
2020 marks the third year of the Your UK Parliament awards, which are designed to celebrate people across the UK who have taken action on issues they care about. The winning entries were chosen by a panel of MPs, Peers and independent judges, who were unanimously impressed by the work people are doing to connect their community with the UK Parliament and democracy.
Winners of the Your UK Parliament Awards 2020 are as follows:
- Volunteer of the Year: Special Needs Jungle
- Digital Campaign or Campaigner of the Year: Operation Black Vote (OBV)
- School of the Year: Torquay Girls’ Grammar School
- Teacher of the Year: Vicky Brown, Redhill Preparatory School
- Community Campaign of the Year: Speak Out
- UKPW Activity of the Year: Kelford Special School
- Campaign or Activity of the Year (in Welsh language): Bangor University Students’ Union
- UKPW Official Partner: Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK
- British Youth Council Paul Boskett Memorial Award: Cormac Savage, MYP from South Down and Lylian Nunoo, MYP for East Sussex
Further detail on the awards can be found here.
