Wiltshire heroes recognised at Make a Difference awards

The awards ceremony was held at Swindon's Steam Museum

A nine year-old who has raised money from her wheelchair, a former drug addict who has become a mentor and a fundraiser who ran dressed as fruit have been honoured with awards.

They featured at BBC Radio Wiltshire's second annual Make a Difference awards.

Finalists were greeted with a red carpet and a samba band at the Steam Museum in Swindon.

Eight winners across categories such as carer, great neighbour and community group were announced at the event.

A local panel of celebrity judges picked the winners, including Pink Floyd's Nick Mason, Time Team's Phil Harding, Swindon Apprentice star Kathryn Burn and Paralympian Louise Hunt Skelly.

Former drug addict Paul Simmons, from Swindon, received the Volunteer Award after he turned his life around, becoming a mentor to help addicts stop and to young people.

Paul Simmons was chosen as the winner of the Volunteer Award by Pink Floyd's Nick Mason

He said: "I can't actually believe it. To win is just blowing my mind...but I have to just reiterate that I do this for every single addict in prison, out of prison, struggling, alone - you are not alone.

"You've got a champion out here who is willing to go to bat for you every single day of the week.

"No matter where you have been in addiction - I spent 27 years in active addiction - we do recover to live our very best lives."

Carmela Chillery-Watson, winner of the award for bravery, is from Devizes

Carmela Chillery-Watson, aged nine, scooped the award for bravery. She has muscular dystrophy and has been fundraising for research into the condition.

She said: "It melts my heart. It makes me feel absolutely amazing and awesome...and I feel like I've done this work for something."

Sally Orange from Salisbury was chosen as the winner of the fundraising category by Apprentice star Kathryn Burn

The Fundraiser Award went to Sally Orange, the only person to have run a marathon on every continent dressed as a fruit.

She does it all for mental health: "For me, dressing as a piece of fruit makes people smile.

"Often they'll then ask me why. I tell them of my real desire to break that stigma associated with poor mental health. Quite often they'll say that maybe they know someone. It just normalises that conversation."

The eight winners were:

• The Volunteer Award: Paul Simmons - who has turned his life around after years of drug addiction and imprisonment to mentor addicts to top and other young people

• The Community Group Award: Dave & Ewe - who run an animal therapy farm, working with children and adults with social and emotional difficulties

• The Fundraiser Award: Sally Orange - who has run countless marathons around the world dressed as food, raising thousands of pounds for good causes

• The Carer Award: Jo & Dave Owen - both have given up their time to foster children whilst also caring for their own, who were born deaf

• The Great Neighbour Award: Ben Thornbury - a teenager who has litter picked and campaigned to keep his town Malmesbury clean and tidy, including making national news in an effort to get the high street's potholes fixed

• The Bravery Award: Carmela Chillery-Watson - the nine-year-old has been raising money for muscular dystrophy research from her wheelchair and has provided online help and tips for others with the condition

• The Green Award: Jane Roberton - who set up a recycling hub in Corsham to make it easier and clearer for everyone to get rid of their waste

• The Together Award: Swindon Bats - an organisation which has been running groups for people who are blind or partially sighted

Other local BBC radio stations in the West have also held award ceremonies, including in Gloucestershire and Somerset.

The ceremony held in Wiltshire on Saturday, 23 September was one of 38 taking place across the country, with all of them expected to be finished by the end of the month.

The aim of the awards is to shine a light on the everyday, unsung heroes who go that extra mile for others in their own community.