HUNDREDS of charity representatives came together for the return of a 'prestigious' award ceremony.

The second Steve Morgan Foundation charity conference, staged at Carden Park Hotel in Cheshire, was another major success with a day of presentations and workshops which was then followed by the return of the awards for the first time since 2012.

Steve Morgan, Chairman of the Foundation, said: "I think all of us tend to get so busy and wrapped up in our day-to-day activities, that we forget that other people out there have issues very similar to our own.

"Charities will often experience the same situations and the same frustrations, and getting together at this conference is so valuable in sharing stories which we can all relate to.

"It was after last year’s first conference that we decided to bring back our awards, and we were really impressed with the quality of the applications."

Presentations at the conference were given by representatives from a series of diverse charities covering subjects such as improving mental health, the importance of volunteers, and how to build resilience within an organisation.

Workshops were then held and charity representatives were encouraged to share their experiences, prompting many to consider linking up together in the future.

RainbowBiz, based in Mold, is a social enterprise that supports vulnerable adults, and they won the Best Entrepreneurial Charity or Social Enterprise award.

Sarah Way, Director, RainbowBiz CIC said: "At RainbowBiz CIC we not only support some of the most marginalised and vulnerable individuals in our community, we also tirelessly strive to create revenue from our Hippy Shop in Mold and from the five Mind, Body and Spirit Festivals we run every year.

"These sources of income have led us to winning the Best Entrepreneurial Charity or Social Enterprise in the Steve Morgan Foundation Awards 2019.

"Our whole team are extremely honoured and proud to have received this recognition for the great work that we do."

The ‘Outstanding Individual Award’ was won by Passion for Learning CIO in Chester, a charity which recruits volunteers to help children to read and learn and Neo Community was named as the Charity or Social Enterprise making the greatest local impact.

The Priority Youth Project was named as the best charity or social enterprise changing young lives, while the Open Door Centre was awarded the prize for the Best Volunteer Team.

The awards, which included prizes of £5,000 for the winners and £1,000 for the runners-up, were presented by Steve and his fellow trustees Sally Morgan, Ashley Lewis and Rhiannon Walker.

Lord Barry Jones added: " It's brilliant news for the great team of RainbowBiz to have the Award from the prestigious Steve Morgan Foundation, to have won is very serious recognition."