Last year Belleek vllage, in County Fermanagh scooped the prestigious title, thanks to innovative work in the community carried out by Belleek and District Community Partnership
The contest is aimed at celebrating the success of vibrant, enterprising and caring rural local communities. Run in conjunction with Northern Ireland Rural Development Council, the Calor Village of the Year Competition is open to rural communities in Northern Ireland with a population of 4,500 or under. The competition will assess communities on five aspects of rural life, building community life, business, young people, environment and older people. This year the competition will include a special award for best rural school to recognise and acknowledge the contribution made by schools to rural community life.
Each category prize winner will receive £1,000 with an additional £5,000 on offer to the village which wins the prestigious title of 2009 Northern Ireland Calor Village of the Year.
Bernie Neill, marketing executive Calor, said: "Since the launch of the Northern Ireland Calor Village of the Year Competition in 2007 we have been overwhelmed by the quality and enthusiasm of villages taking part in the competition.I would encourage any village with a population of less than 4,500 to enter the competition. Northern Ireland is home to many vibrant villages with highly commendable people making a real difference to rural life and the Calor Village of the Year Competition is a perfect way to bring everyone together and help villages realise their strengths and celebrate their success."
Teresa Canavan, deputy chief executive of Rural Development Council said: "We work closely with rural community groups on a daily basis and witness first hand the hard work, dedication and community spirit that local people have in their village life.This competition aims to recognise and celebrate the contribution of those people to the social and economic framework of rural life."
Belleek, the 2008 Calor Village of the Year known world-wide for its pottery, was praised for unsurpassed enthusiasm and outstanding effort, consistency and achievement demonstrated in all categories.
This included Belleek's innovative use of local buildings from church halls, to local schools, from the hotel to the fire station and their innovative projects which had engaged people from all ages and backgrounds and enabled them to be apart of village life, no matter what their age.
Joanne Cunningham from Belleek and District Community Partnership advises those entering the competition, to approach the application form in terms of the community as a whole rather than the just the work your organisation does in the village.
"Talk to as many other groups and organisations that operate in your village and find out the range of activities they have to offer. This will create a collective approach to the submission and strengthen your chances of demonstrating the success of the village. "
"Make sure the whole community is aware of the competition and that everyone gets the opportunity to submit ideas and suggestions in the completed application. It is also important to keep everyone updated on developments throughout the competition such as the Judges visiting day," she said.
"Treat each category question as a stand-alone answer as each question is judged individually. For example, if you mentioned a 'meals on wheels' initiative within the 'older people' category it may also have the potential to fit within the 'community life' and 'business' categories.
"Enter all categories. You don't have to be a contender to win each individual category but you do have to enter all to have a chance of winning the overall title. The Calor Village of the Year competition is about individual villages and what they do with the resources available to them not what they do in comparison to other villages," she said.
"Get input from as many people as possible. Brainstorm each category as you would be surprised at what ideas and initiatives may be developed to help provide a much stronger application in demonstrating the success of your village. Develop an events calendar and document everything that happens in your village on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Think about the various people within your village old, young, parents and toddlers, unemployed etc, and what events, facilities and activities are available. "
"Provide as much supporting documentation or material, flyers, posters, newspaper cuttings, as possible that helps showcase your village as a vibrant community with various activities and events that are available to residents and visitors. Plan and co-ordinate the judges visit as you need to demonstrate how best they can encapsulate their village in just two hours. Make sure that the whole community actively participates in the visit and focus on the strengths of your village whether it is the people, distinctive buildings or the range of activities and facilities available.
"Answer the 'your village'section of the application from the heart. What is it about your village that makes it the best in Northern Ireland? If you can't answer that from your heart then a hundred hours of judging visits will never convince them," she said.
"Go for it! If you're not in, you can't win. When we entered Belleek in the inaugural year of the competition we never thought that we would finish runner-up and win the 'Community Life' Award and then win the overall title last year, but we did. The Calor Village of the Year competition for us has been a wonderful experience from start to finish. It's great for once to get the opportunity and encouragement to look at what's good and right about our communities," she said.
For more information on the Calor Village of the Year competition 2009 and how to download an application pack visit: www.calorvillageoftheyear.org.