The Steamship Shieldhall Charity, a group of volunteers based in Southampton operating the heritage steamship SS Shieldhall, have been awarded The King’s Award for Voluntary Service for 2024. This is the highest award a local voluntary group can receive in the UK and is equivalent to an MBE.
Shieldhall was ‘rescued’ in 1988 when deemed too uneconomical to run by Southern Water, and purchased for her scrap value of £20k by the charity that still looks after her today. Some 30,000 volunteer hours per year are estimated to be donated by over 100 active volunteers, who in turn are supported by a network of friends and organisations. Today, Shieldhall is recognised by TripAdvisor as ‘No 1 of 122 Things to Do in Southampton.’
The Steamship Shieldhall Charity is one of 281 local charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year. Their work, along with others from across the UK, highlights how fantastic volunteers are contributing to their local communities and working to make life better for those around them. The King’s Award for Voluntary Service aims to recognise outstanding work by local volunteer groups to support their communities.
2024 marks the second year of The King’s Award for Voluntary Service. Recipients are announced annually on 14th November. Shieldhall Chairman Martin Phipps said: “It is a fitting testament and reward to all the hours of hard work our volunteers put into not only preserving, maintaining and crewing Shieldhall but also to everything Shieldhall gives back to the community. This includes ambulance and fire brigade rescue training, Coastguard helicopter training, hosting Young Carers awards and days out, providing youth training days and work experience for young students and cadets. As well as providing wonderful days out to our passengers on Britain’s largest seagoing steam passenger ship. We look forward to ensuring that Shieldhall remains at the centre of the Southampton community and is ‘alive and steaming’ for many years to come.”
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