RELAYS - It's not over yet!

Team RELAYS on 14 Sept 2012 with Olympic Champion Jason Gardener, MBE
and  Team GB Paralympic Bronze medalist, Ben Rushgrove 

Since 2008, RELAYS has worked with nearly two-thirds of a million people across the South West of England. On 14 September 2012 we put on a special event for 120 invited guests at Watershed, Bristol to celebrate the success of the project over the last four years.

A number of key speakers talked about how RELAYS has inspired people through creative arts, sport, volunteering and business across the region. The RELAYS Volunteer Awards 2012 were also presented by Olympic Champion Jason Gardener, MBE and Team GB Paralympic Bronze medalist, Ben Rushgrove. I was very proud that Bath Spa University graduate, Kara Rennie, received a runner up award in the category for 'Outstanding contribution to the 2012 Cultural Legacy' for her fantastic work on Illuminate Bath.

There were also performances by B Sharp music group, based in Lyme Regis, and RISE Youth Dance from Bristol, as well as an exhibition of RELAYS event paraphernalia. It was lovely to look back on all that we've  achieved as a team. It's been an amazing journey. I've relished the opportunity to develop and manage such a diverse range of projects and work with so many talented and enthusiastic people, organisations, students and volunteers. I've been writing this blog since the early days of RELAYS and it's a great reminder of all that has happened and how far we have come.

It's not over yet as RELAYS has been awarded additional funding from Legacy Trust UK to help us work closely with Widening Participation departments in Universities in the South West over the coming months to fully integrate our work, and ensure an ongoing legacy from London 2012.