Sancton Village Hall was awarded the King’s Award for Voluntary Service for 2025
An East Yorkshire village hall has received the most prestigious award available to local voluntary group. Sancton Village Hall has been honoured with the King’s Award for Voluntary Service for 2025, the equivalent of an MBE.
Dedicated trustees and volunteers have spent over a quarter of a century transforming the hall from a dilapidated shell into a vibrant hub serving the village and wider community. Funding was secured to develop the venue, with recent backing from the Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), alongside support from the Sancton Hill Wind Farm Community Fund.
Additional grants from East Riding Of Yorkshire Council’s Do It For East Yorkshire (DIFEY) fund were also vital in developing the hall’s social and cultural programme.
In 2024, it secured £2,500 for the ‘social Sancton project’, including music events, creative writing sessions, wreath-making workshops, and Halloween and Christmas celebrations. It was also granted £37,000 from the UKSPF to enable it to expand its community offerings.
The hall is now home to hoop and dance classes, pilates, yoga, live theatrical performances and Sancton Writer’s Circle, while volunteers organise coffee mornings, quiz nights, film screenings, table tennis, craft workshops and other activities.
Councillor Anne Handley, leader of East Riding Of Yorkshire Council, said: “It’s fantastic to see Sancton Village Hall receive this prestigious award. We are proud to support communities across the East Riding through the DIFEY fund, and send our congratulations to the trustees and volunteers in Sancton whose hard work has been justly recognised.”
Anita Liley, Chair of Trustees, said: “Everything that happens is through the efforts of volunteers and the hall couldn’t manage without them. This award is for everyone who has put in their time and effort to make the hall a success and we feel proud and honoured to receive it”.
His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of the East Riding Of Yorkshire, Mr Jim Dick OBE, added: “I’m delighted that Sancton Village Hall have been awarded the King’s Award for Voluntary Service. This prestigious award recognises and celebrates the extraordinary dedication, compassion, and impact of volunteers who give their time selflessly to support others.
“Their work embodies the very best of our communities and is a shining example of the power of voluntary service. We commend them for making a lasting difference in the lives of so many – their hard work genuinely changes lives and strengthens our communities. My congratulations on this outstanding achievement.”
Established in 2002 to mark Her Late Majesty The Queen’s Golden Jubilee, the King’s Award for Voluntary Service honours exceptional contributions by local volunteer groups supporting their communities. Following His Majesty The King’s accession, the accolade has continued, with 2025 representing its third year under the new reign.