Nominations open for Cllr Awards 2025 ahead of ceremonies
Jonathan Carr-West, chief executive of LGIU, said: "LGIU is delighted to once again present the annual Cllr Awards, a celebration of the outstanding commitment and creativity shown by our locally elected officials.
"Councillors play a crucial role in the wellbeing of our communities.
"Though much of their work happens quietly behind the scenes and without fanfare, their contributions are vital."
Anyone can submit a nomination, including members of the public, fellow councillors, and council officers.
Nominations must highlight a councillor's exceptional work over the past year and how it has positively impacted their community.
The award categories include Community Champion, Leader of the Year, Young Councillor of the Year, Innovator of the Year, and Lifetime Legend.
Shortlisted candidates will be announced in the autumn.
Winners will be revealed at ceremonies in Glasgow and London on November 5 and November 18.
Nominations are open until midnight on Wednesday, June 11.
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BBC News
9 hours ago
- BBC News
Afghanistan: Women trapped in the mental health system
High on a hill in the west of the Afghan capital, Kabul, behind a steel gate topped with barbed wire, lies a place few locals speak of, and even fewer women's wing of a mental health centre run by the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) is the largest of only a handful of facilities in the country dedicated to helping women with mental call it Qala, or the BBC gained exclusive access to the crowded centre where staff find it difficult to cope with the 104 women currently within its walls. Among them are women like Mariam* who says she is a victim of domestic violence. Thought to be in her mid-20s, she's been here for nine years, after enduring what she describes as abuse and neglect by her family, followed by a period of homelessness."My brothers used to beat me whenever I visited a neighbour's house," she alleges. Her family did not want to let her out of the house alone, she says, because of a cultural belief that young girls should not leave the house without her brothers appeared to have kicked her out, forcing her to live on the streets at a young age. It was here a woman found her and, apparently concerned about her mental health, brought her to the her story, Mariam's smile is constantly radiant. She is often seen singing, and is one of the few patients allowed to work around the building, volunteering to help with is ready - and willing - to be she cannot leave because she has nowhere to go. "I don't expect to return to my father and mother. I want to marry someone here in Kabul, because even if I go back home, they'll just abandon me again," Mariam she can't return to her abusive family, she is effectively trapped in the Afghanistan, strict Taliban regulations and deeply-rooted patriarchal traditions make it nearly impossible for women to live independently. Women are legally and socially required to have a male guardian for travel, work, or even accessing many services, and most economic opportunities are closed to of gender inequality, limited education, and restricted employment have left many women financially dependent on male breadwinners, reinforcing a cycle where survival often hinges on male on a bed in one of the dormitories is 28-year-old says she was brought to the centre by her husband, who was forcing her out of the family home after he married again. Like Mariam, she now has nowhere else to go. She too is ready to be released, but her husband will not take her back, and her widowed mother cannot support her three sons now live with an uncle. They visited her initially, but Habiba hasn't seen them this year; without access to a phone, she cannot even make contact."I want to be reunited with my children," she says. Their stories are far from unique at the centre, where our visit, including conversations with staff and patients, is overseen by officials from the Taliban patients have been here for 35 to 40 years, says Saleema Halib, a psychotherapist at the centre. "Some have been completely abandoned by their families. No-one comes to visit, and they end up living and dying here."Years of conflict has left its mark on the mental health of many Afghans, especially women, and the issue is often poorly understood and subject to response to a recent UN report on the worsening situation of women's rights in Afghanistan, Hamdullah Fitrat, Taliban government's deputy spokesperson, told the BBC that their government did not allow any violence against women and they have "ensured women's rights in Afghanistan".But UN data released in 2024 points to a worsening mental health crisis linked to the Taliban's crackdown on women's rights: 68% of women surveyed reported having "bad" or "very bad" mental health. Services are struggling to cope, both inside and outside the centre, which has seen a several-fold increase in patients over the last four years, and now has a waiting list."Mental illness, especially depression, is very common in our society," says Dr Abdul Wali Utmanzai, a senior psychiatrist at a nearby hospital in Kabul, also run by ARCS. He says he sees up to 50 outpatients a day from different provinces, most of them women: "They face severe economic pressure. Many have no male relative to provide for them - 80% of my patients are young women with family issues."The Taliban government says it is committed to providing health services. But with restrictions on women's movement without a male chaperon, many cannot seek help. All of this makes it more difficult for women like Mariam and Habiba to leave - and the longer they stay, the fewer places there are for those who say they desperately need family had been trying for a year to admit their 16-year-old daughter, Zainab, to the centre, but they were told there were no beds available. She is now one of the youngest patients there. Until then she had been confined to her home - her ankles shackled to prevent her running not clear what mental health problems Zainab has been experiencing, but she struggles to verbalise her thoughts.A visibly distressed Feda Mohammad says the police recently found his daughter miles from had gone missing for days, which is especially dangerous in Afghanistan, where women are not allowed to travel long distances from home without a male guardian."She climbs the walls and runs away if we unchain her," Feda Mohammad breaks down into tears every now and then, especially when she sees her mother Mohammad says they noticed her condition when she was eight. But it worsened after multiple bombings hit her school in April 2022."She was thrown against a wall by the blast," he says. "We helped carry out the wounded and collect the bodies. It was horrific."Exactly what would have happened if space hadn't been found is unclear. Zainab's father said her repeated attempts to run away were dishonouring him, and he argued it was better for her and her family that she is confined to the she - like Mariam and Habiba - will now become one of Qala's abandoned women remains to be seen.*The names of the patients and their families have been changed throughout
The Guardian
3 days ago
- The Guardian
Monastic music that survived Henry VIII's dissolution brought back to life
Almost five centuries ago a community of monks in the West Country of England gathered to sing, imploring their God to help them endure the challenges of medieval life. Thanks to an extraordinary discovery of music that survived Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries in the early 16th century, the songs created by the Buckland Abbey monks were ringing out again across the hills and woods of the Tavy valley in Devon this weekend. The themes are heavy – the threats from disease and crop failures, not to mention powerful rulers – but the polyphonic style is bright and joyful, a contrast to the sort of mournful chants most associated with monks. 'It's an extraordinary rich, textured sound,' said Prof James Clark, a University of Exeter historian, as the university's chapel choir rehearsed at Buckland. 'They're all singing together but following different melodies. It's a sort of melodious cacophony of sound.' Clark found the music while researching Buckland Abbey for the National Trust. Only one book – rather boringly setting out the customs the monks followed – was known to exist, held in the British Library. 'I didn't hold out a great deal of hope it would suddenly open up the lost world of Buckland Abbey,' said Clark. But in the back of the Buckland Book, he came across some leaves of parchment. 'Those leaves contained pieces of chant – text and notation. Though there were 800-plus monasteries in medieval England, you can count almost on one hand pieces of music that survived. 'The Tudor state scrapped Latin worship and the lyrics and music that went with it were largely discarded. Most of this stuff is lost. But there it was, shoved into the back of the book.' The bulk of the book was written in the 15th century but Clark was able to date the music to the early 16th century. 'That made it especially exciting because it transports us to that last generation of monks of the medieval English tradition that had been there for a millennium,' he said. It chimed with another Buckland document from the same era. 'By extraordinary serendipity, it turned out to be the contract for the employment of an organist and choirmaster.' His name was Robert Derkeham, and he would have been hired to improve the singing of the dozen monks who lived at Buckland and the local boys brought in to sing the treble parts. Clark said it was clear that, as well as worshipping God, the monastery was trying to impress patrons by creating wonderful music. 'Monasteries were competing in a very crowded marketplace for investment from patrons,' he said. 'One of the strategies was to upgrade the music. Buckland bought in expertise to turn what may have been a rather ragged choir into something more professional. They were being responsive to cultural change, keeping up with the times and impress their audience.' Derkeham remained at the monastery for more than 15 years, until it was closed and he was pensioned off. Clark said the text was dark. 'It is calling out to what we might call an Old Testament God. One calls out to God to defend his people; one says, 'stay the hand of the avenging angel'; one talks about being in despair. 'I like that sense that it carries us back to a moment in time. In our world, medieval religion is becoming ever more difficult for us to grasp. I think this helps us return to an understanding that it was a sensory experience,' said Clark. 'If we're going to do these people who died 500 years ago some sort of justice as historians, we've got to understand the world as they saw it and as experienced it.' The book has been loaned to Buckland by the British Library and can be viewed at the abbey. The University of Exeter Chapel Choir will perform the music live in Buckland Abbey's medieval Great Barn on 16 and 17 August.
BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Students across the West excited for future after A-Level success
Students across the West had a day of "nervous excitement" as they collected their A-level results. There were the usual feelings of relief, joy and in some cases disappointment, as students gathered in school halls across the region to find out if they had achieved the grades they had set out UCAS said a record number of students had been accepted into their first-choice university, with 28.3% of all grades being marked at A* or A - up from 27.8% last Pearsall, head teacher of Wellsway School in Keynsham, said: "We're delighted with our students, whatever they achieve, whatever their outcome." Miranda Fay, a Wellsway School student, said she had secured the necessary grades to study medicine at Cambridge in October. She said she had woken up early to check her results online after struggling to sleep."It's been a very long journey, with lots of different hoops you had to jump through to get there, but I'm really, really pleased," she said."It will feel really weird to move away from home, and I've always been at this school. But I'm really ready for it now. I'm excited." Mr Pearsall said results day consisted largely of "nervous excitement", and was a milestone staff looked forward to each year. "It's a point that's tinged with sadness but excitement," he said."We're doing a job and we want those students to be able to move on to what they want to do with their lives. "Part of our role is to enable students to follow their dreams and aspirations for the future. Today is about that."Mr Pearsall said the school's exam results were broadly in line with last year, which he said symbolised "everybody's hard work, determination and resilience". Among the students collecting their results at Devizes School and Sixth Form, Wiltshire, was Amen Akhtar, who said he had breathed a sigh of relief as he realised his place at Exeter University had been secured with an A and two B's."I'm feeling very scared but I'm excited for this next chapter," he him, Hannah Webb said: "I'm nervous, we've had to wait such a long time."The pair laughed and clapped as she discovered her grades of two As and two Ds. At Cheltenham Bournside School in Gloucestershire, falling shy of her expected grades came as a blessing for 19-year-old Amy Sinclair."I did predict that I wouldn't do as well as I was offered at my firm university, but it's all good," she said. "I went through clearing as I didn't want to go to my insurance choice, but I did want to go to Manchester Met."I decided a few months ago I wanted to change and they let me in. I'm very excited."It was a lot of hours of revision but it was worth it," she added. How much does university cost, and is it worth it?How do student loans work and when are they written off?What is an apprenticeship and how much are apprentices paid? Andy Berry, CEO of University Centre Somerset College Group said it was "wonderful" to see students achieving their aims."A-Level results are looking stunning this year. Our offer for higher education right here in Somerset is therefore growing. "I remember leaving school and thinking 'I don't know what I'm going to do', and now we can provide those pathways for young people."
