Organisation which seeks to engage the black community the most

Chinwe, the coordinator of Wearetheiroko C.I.C, believes in the power of collaboration, networking and running a sustainable organisation. She finds out through her collaboration, where the needs of the black community can be better met and actively seeks community members to sign post them to various help system and centres. She has a vast array of the black community members who say very positive feedbacks about her organisation and herself. Keep up the good work Chinwe.

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"WEARETHEIROKO" is a social enterprise seeking to drive transformational change through Sustainability Art Projects and Cultural Exchanges. This is an intergenerational endeavour to ensure that we are all doing our bit to look after our planet by living simply and having fun while doing so!

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Chinwe is a very dedicated individual who champions the course of the Black communities most especially in Milton Keynes and she is very approachable.

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Rooda has worked tirelessly to bring together the disparate African communities reading in Milton Keynes Creating a sense of pride in their indigenous cultures and a willingness to share their values and beliefs with others. Since creating the foundation I have witnessed both young and old coming together in a spirit of unity valuing their culture and sharing it with the wider communities of Milton Keynes. It could not have been done without Rooda and her ability to develop networks. The development of the foundation followed a fateful shooting within the Somali community in 2017. Rooda has managed to bring out the positive values of African identity within the Somali community and other African communities who are so often presented in a negative light by the media.

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The reason why I nominated this business or person is because, they work tireless for the community to bring them together regardless on their age, gender, religion and many more. It is also supoort the community to bulid good relationship and make them feel welcome and and provided all the support that they need.

 would like to vote for Rooda Abdillahi Chair woman of African Diaspora Foundation. She works day and night facilitating engagements within our African community in Milton Keynes and she has been very very consistent with her mission for years. She does it all out of love for her community and her work shows what she stands for.

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Achievements in community service, Leadership skills, advocacy and Activism, Creativity and Innovative style, Cultural Preservation; Education Background, Positive Representation and more importantly her overall personality are enough reasons nominating Queen Lodi Jose for the award.

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Her achievement in community service, her leadership skills, her advocacy and activism as regards women and children, innovation and creativity, cultural preservation and positive representation are overwhelming. She has demonstrated that she truly fits into this category of nomination in full course and I have no doubt nominating Queen Lodi Jose.

The Equality Council UK (ECUK) is an anti-discriminatory and anti hate crime charity based in MIlton Keynes but working across the UK in partnership with agencies and communities locally, regionally and nationally to identify issues to be addressed so as to ensure equality of opportunity. We actively identify and engage with community and faith groups - African, Arabic, Bengali, Caribbean, Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Somali, Tamil and work with their ambassadors to deliver particular projects and programmes to address particular issues which ultimately lead to their empowerment. We also ensure that employment organisations and agencies are delivering equality of opportunity and have measures in place to address discrimination and harassment. A selection of projects delivered in recent years include: - Health Needs Assessment to identify health inequalities (with MK Council and MK Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) - Diabetes awareness and understanding (with CCG) - Organ and blood donation awareness and understanding (with NHS Blood and Transplant) - Healthy lifestyle (with Sports England) - Ambulance Trust services (with South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) and East of England Ambulance Service (EEAST)

Nathan was born at MK General on 20.05 2008 and was diagnosed with Sickle cell Disease before birth. SCD is an inherited genetic blood condition for which there is no cure. It is typically diagnosed within black community and has been known as "Negro disease" in the past. SCD still does not receive the gravitas is requires because of the colour it represents. Nathan is on daily medication including morphine and daily chemotherapy and suffers regular hospital admissions. Nathan is an inspiration to both young and old living with lifelong medical condition. His ambition is to inspire others living with a life long condition and empower them to believe that your diagnosis should not define you. Nathan is extremely hard working with tenacity of a bull dog and is determined to inspire others against all odds. At the age of 8 Nathan won the Floella Benjamin life time award for his achievements despite his diagnosis. At age 11 he attained greater depth in all his SATs despite an annual attendance of only 60% due to hospital admissions. Nathan was then awarded 100% Scholarship in private school because of his excellent performance in his entry exams. At age 7 Nathan started competitive go-karting at Daytona Milton Keynes and at age 8 he was the youngest to win the Cadet In-kart championship. 2 years later he won the Rokie cadet championship at Whilton Mill Juniors. Nathan then started competing in National championships and 2 years later finished 5th at Total Karting Zero National electric Karting championship. Nathan was also scouted by Leicester football club as a goalkeeper but unfortunately his diagnosis got in the way as he suffered increased admissions due to playing in the cold and wet conditions. This however did not quench his thirst for competing and success as he tried out for Basketball and was selected to play for Northants Basketball club at National league level. Yes he has Sickle beta Thalassaemia With several admissions misses school quite a lot and at times can't do the things he loves but when he is well he has a damn good shot at it. He is my inspiration and empowers not just me but the old and young alike to pursue their dream's because I see him pursuing his despite the daily challenge presented by his diagnosis.

Central Staffing is one of the black led business in Milton Keynes. Is a recruitment business that supports blacks within Milton Keynes and surrounding in gaining employment. They stand out as their services goes beyond service to mankind the support students and offer mentorship to undergraduates and graduates. The give back to the community through their not for profit sis organisation Alfred Community Outreach.

Great ethics, passion and drive, engaging the local community if cookery and self help schemes in person and online.

I vote to Jade because I know her very well. She is a strong and kind woman and always thinks about people and helps people a lot. She always tries to provide the best. She always welcomes and supports ideas. she is very kind and compassionate and works from the bottom of her heart. I wish her all the best.

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5 On It Foundation is a wonderful charity that delivers a range of sports and arts programmes specifically for young people that encourage and value cultural diversity. The charity takes time to understand the local Black community and offer targeted activities that are relevant – including basketball, football, tennis, netball, You Tube and DJ workshops. Every programme is free, making each accessible to everyone, but quality is high – coaches are all level 2, DBS checked and often have had to manage discrimination themselves and are well equipped to share their experiences and how best to work through such challenges. A key initiative created by 5 On It is Gang Today Gone Tomorrow - an anti-gang activity that uses mentoring and sport to inspire and educate, especially those young people potentially at risk. With x-gang mentors also joining the sessions, the programme positively impacts the lives of young people which, in turn, positively impacts the community. Basketball is one of the most popular grass root sports that can be played in community areas and can be an antidote to gang violence. Participants are encouraged to continue to basketball in their local area and invite others to join them on the court where they can socialise and enjoy hanging out – a healthy focus away from gang life. This amazing programme has been featured several times on local television and 5 On It were delighted to welcome Matthew Barber, TVP Police and Crime Commissione,r to their Gang Today Gone Tomorrow basketball tournament earlier this year https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fv4-eud05Gw 5 On It run free camps for teenagers and they always embrace culture in the food they give to the children. Their last camp they had a mix of cuisines and the children particularily liked the Nigerian Jollof rice. I was so pleased to see a charity which was serving food like this. You can see one of their videos here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLFUzw-Qu0s If you watch this video from BBC News you can see some of the work that they do: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDkR_qnP6ZE&t=31s They are a black led charity and their founders include Peter Bakare (GB 2012 Olympian), Nigel Lloyd (Barbados Professional International Basketballer and Coach and Jordan Spencer (Pro Basketballer who has played in Europe and is from Milton Keynes. To view some of the charities ambassadors visit: http://5onit.co.uk/sample-page/ambassadors/ In essence 5 On It are the champions of inclusion and I’m thrilled to nominate them for this fantastic award. Over their free summer programmes they welcomed a diverse range of participants, 57% of attendees were from Black, Asian, Mixed groups and 27% were Caucasian.

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Alice has been working tirelessly with her team in Milton's Keynes to support and empower BAME communities and young people in the Milton's Keynes. Her work is evident with young people Capacity programmes and upcoming event with Thames Valley Police. Also she has given us a WhatsApp platforms where business people advertise their businesses. Additionally, those social media platforms people use to share opportunities and enhancing social support networks.

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Alice’s concerns encompass the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, disproportionate police stop and search practices affecting BAME communities, inadequate housing, unemployment, overrepresentation of BAME children in care and the criminal justice system, knife crime, shootings, grooming, drug trafficking, and antisocial behavior linked to complex family issues. Additionally, she recognises the challenges faced by BAME communities in maintaining their cultural identity due to suspected gang activity, extremism, radicalization, as well as post-migration difficulties such as cultural differences, racism, discrimination, language barriers, and lack of social support. Persistent academic underachievement is also a matter of concern. These issues have garnered significant attention in UK media and have been raised by parents and guardians within the BAME community.

Alice’s growing concern reveals systemic flaws and a lack of understanding and awareness regarding the needs of BAME communities. Urgent improvements are needed to ensure equal and fair distribution of public services.

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