THE IOMA Group are sponsors of the Isle of Man Newspapers Excellence Awards category for ‘Charity, Cultural and Social Enterprise’ for which three well known local personalities have been nominated for Thursday evening’s awards ceremony.

Penny Creighton (Age Concern), Olga Gray (Manx Gateway Drama Group) and Jonathan Hall (Friends Provident International) are all heavily involved in charity fund raising and local community projects.

Age Concern is one of the Island’s longest established charities with its stated aim to create a society where every older person counts.

It costs £800,000 a year to run the organisation and maintain the excellent services provided by Age Concern, raised by the team and through generous local donations. The charity provides 20,000 day care places a year and serves 4,800 meals across its lunch clubs.

This year the charity also launched the CHAT bus to link to the elderly in the community, which has proved a major success.

Friends Provident International is one of the Isle of Man’s biggest employers and has a long established record of being involved in the community., including generous donations to various good causes.

The company has also developed a well organised CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) programme which increasingly recognises environmental responsibility, engaging as often as possible with the local community.

A key aspect has been the fostering of partnerships between the company’s staff and the community.

The Manx Gateway Drama Group was created for people with learning difficulties and was an instant success. The Group, launched two years ago, has seen its members grow in esteem and self confidence.

“Through drama they find themselves,” said Olga Gray, Group director. 

The Group’s very first show won the award for the Most Promising Youth Theatre at the All England Festival of PLays and this group of performers continues to flourish under the guidance of dedicated supporters and volunteers.

The IOMA Group Award will be presented by Nigel Wood.