In 2018 we were delighted to receive two awards recognising our charity and our enterprising nature. These were:

‘Charity of the Year’ – Community Foundation for Calderdale

HOT was awarded Charity of the Year 2018 at Community Foundation for Calderdale’s Community Spirit Awards. We were up against Slow the Flow Calderdale, Overgate Hospice, Healthy Minds and Archway for the award and it was with great pride that the team collected ‘Riley’ the Sheep and brought him back to HOT HQ!

The Community Spirit Charity Awards is an annual event that celebrates the great work of charities and community groups across Calderdale. The awards have been designed so that any charity or community group – regardless of their size or cause – can enter and be in with a chance of winning.
The Awards continue to recognise those charities, of which there are over 9,000 in Calderdale, that are innovative, exemplify best practice, and deliver sustainable benefit to communities and society in general.

‘Enterprising Organisation’ – Locality

In November 2018 Alison our CEO, Hilary our (then) Vice Chair, Sabha our Finance Director, and Katy our Marketing Assistant went to Bristol for the annual Locality Awards and highly anticipated Locality Convention 2018. The Locality Convention is the biggest event in the sector and over 500 people who believe in the power of community came together. It’s a great opportunity to connect with like-minded people, get inspired, gain insight, skills and ideas and influence the debate. Plus, it’s now also a celebration of the power of community.

2018 was the inaugural awards ceremony. The awards have been created to celebrate the dedication and inspiration of people and organisations in the Locality network who step in when others look away, fill a need that’s not being met, and create spaces at the heart of our communities where lives are transformed. We were beyond delighted to be awarded ‘Enterprising Organisation’.

More celebrations

In 2018, HOT also celebrated reaching a number of milestones. All five of our nurseries were awarded ‘Outstanding’ by OFSTED, of which 488 children attended.

75 businesses were based at our Enterprise Centres, Elsie Whiteley Innovation Centre and Hanson Lane Enterprise Centre, with £18,103.65 awarded in business start-up grants.

Learn more about our 21st Birthday celebrations

As well as the information from our archives and the contributions our connections are kindly providing to tell our story, we have lots of other things planned. Learn more on our official webpage, via the button below.