Meet Cornwall's most neighbourly neighbours

Richard Northey went to Chacewater School - now he is the school crossing patrol officer in the village

A much-loved "lollipop man" and a Constantine community champion are among those in the running for a BBC Radio Cornwall Make a Difference Award.

An altruistic metal detectorist and a leading light in the Launceston musical scene complete the nominees in the Great Neighbour category.

The awards, which are in their fourth year, were created to celebrate those Cornish people and groups who go the extra mile for their community.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Falmouth in September 2025.

'I can't sit down'

At 81 years old, Richard Northey from Chacewater could be forgiven for taking life easy.

But if you ask him how he fills his days, be prepared for a long list.

"I do the lollipop job, cut grass, cut the recreation ground and the play area, cut the grass around my friends' graves in the churchyard if they want them cut, dig up weeds around the village and clean the toilets too, so I'm very busy," he said.

It is clear that Richard is well-known and well-loved in his home village, especially when he puts on the school crossing patrol uniform and picks up his lollipop sign.

He smiled: "Some lovely people here there is, lovely friendly people, parents are lovely and the children, lovely little children they are.

"I know I'm getting on a bit but I can't sit down, I got to keep pottering around, I've got my little smallholding, my animals, tractors, all sorts, and I help my mates harvest time with the hay and silage.

"I love doing the jobs, I can't sit down all day and watch the television and play with the phone, I've got to get up and do something."

Sarah Bradley is at the centre of many different projects in Launceston

Sarah Bradley moved to Launceston 12 years ago and runs a shop in the north Cornwall town, but that is only the beginning of her work.

She also runs Launceston Pop Choir and helps run Launceston Youth Music Theatre, which has 90 young performers on its books, a busy performance schedule and a waiting list to join.

Ms Bradley is also a force for change on the business side, together with other traders, she helped to re-establish a monthly town market, which was so successful it led to a twice-monthly farmers' market as well.

"I don't really think about it, it just sort of happens," she laughed.

"You see a gap or you see a space and you just want to help, so I feel like I help other people do things as well.

"Launceston's a brilliant town and I'm just constantly championing it because there are so many glorious people here."

Tracey Clowes from Constantine has 25 years of voluntary work behind her, and shows no sign of slowing down

The village of Constantine between Falmouth and Helston is one of those places that looks calm and peaceful, but is actually a hive of activity - and Tracey Clowes is at the heart of much of it.

"I am lucky to be in Constantine, I love my village," she said.

"I enjoy the fact that I feel safe here, there's lots going on because we have so many different organisations and I just want other people to feel that too.

"I want them to love our village, I want them to feel part of a community, like I do, and feel there are things they can do."

Tracey moved to the village in 1998 - since then her voluntary work has included creating a village museum, arranging the Christmas lights, setting up a goodwill charity shop and organising fundraising events to pay for it all.

She is modest about her part in the community's success: "It happens because there are wonderful people in the village who, when I say 'can you help me?' they'll help me, but it's always teamwork, I always say that."

David Buxton is a familiar sight on the streets near his home in Launceston

There is an outdoors theme to the work that has led to David Buxton being nominated in the Great Neighbour category.

He can often be seen around Launceston painting walls, trimming back foliage and weeding pavements.

"Basically whenever I see a problem, I like to go and tackle it," he said.

"I just like the area to look nice, it's a lovely part of the country and when you walk about, if you see litter, it just makes sense to pick it up and tidy up.

"We used to get an awful lot of litter here, now that we've started clearing out the flower beds there's a lot less litter and the whole area just looks much nicer."

David has also put his metal detecting skills to use, setting up a free service five years ago called Cornwall Ringfinders to help people recover lost property, such as rings on beaches.

"The rings tend to be very sentimental," he said. "Lots of them have back stories where they're multi-generational, if they've lost granny's ring, it's very emotional for them and being able to reunite them with a lost item is immensely rewarding."

The winners of the BBC Radio Cornwall Make A Difference Awards 2025 will be announced at a ceremony in Falmouth in September.