A COMMUNITY interest company in Flintshire is in the running for two national awards.

Deeside-based Enbarr Foundation will be attending the national final of the UK’s leading rural business awards programme, where it has been shortlisted in two categories for its outstanding accomplishments in business.

The national final of the 2021/22 Rural Business Awards takes place virtually on Thursday, February 24, following a series of regional finals in late 2021. During the online presentation, the overall winners in each category will be announced.

The 2021/22 Rural Business Awards features 13 categories including Best Rural Start-Up Business and Best Rural Diversification Project, Best Rural Professional Services Business and The Triumph Over Adversity Award.

The Enbarr Foundation has been shortlisted in the Best Rural Diversification Project category and the Best Rural Social Enterprise, Charity or Community Project category following its triumph at the Rural Business Awards regional finals.

The Enbarr Foundation CIC is a non-profit organisation that was created to restore and develop the area around the John Summers Clock Tower into a community hub for the people of Deeside, and the surrounding areas.

The community hub will be a place where people can access training and development courses to improve employability and where local business leaders can meet to collaborate. The site will also house a café, library, woodland garden and vegetable patch, and a museum that will explain the history of the site.

Vicki Roskams, engagement manager from Enbarr Foundation, said: “Winning at the regional finals of the Rural Business Awards was a great boost for our organisation. It provided us with a great platform to showcase all the amazing work being done in the area and raised awareness for rural diversity.

"We’re now looking forward to the national finals.”

The Rural Business Awards are the brainchild of Leicestershire businesswomen Anna Price and Jemma Clifford, who wanted to showcase the wealth of entrepreneurial talent in rural areas of Britain.

Anna Price said: “We are excited to host a seventh year of the Rural Business Awards, and every year the competition gets tougher to judge. It’s an honour to showcase the fantastic talent of the rural sector in the UK and we wish The Enbarr Foundation good luck ahead of the final.”