Press release

Netbuddy wins 'Inspiring Voices' Award from Media Trust

www.Netbuddy.org.uk, a social enterprise based in London, has been recognised with a £500 Inspiring Voices Award from Media Trust.

www.Netbuddy.org.uk is an interactive online community providing hundreds of practical tips and suggestions for supporting people with learning disabilities.

Launched in September 2010, Netbuddy.org.uk is a free resource, available 24 hours a day, where people can go to find ideas on everything from brushing teeth to coping with challenging behaviour.

There are also interactive information packs on the site, which users can add to and develop themselves.These range from guidance about financial support to arts and leisure activities for people with learning disabilities.

Netbuddy Co-founder Deborah Gundle said, “Netbuddy is the first online resource of its kind. It's so simple and fills such an obvious need that a lot of people think it must already exist – but, until now, it didn't! Nearly all parents and carers of people with learning disabilities feel overwhelmed and isolated at times and that is why we decided to launch the website.

“We wanted to provide support in a very real, practical way. The beauty of the website is that it is completely interactive. People can add their own tips and develop the resource on an ongoing basis. We are thrilled to receive this award because it demonstrates just what people can achieve for themselves. We hope it will help us raise Netbuddy’s profile and reach a lot more people who could benefit from the site.”

Media Trust’s Inspiring Voices Awards celebrate the varied and inspiring ways disadvantaged communities have empowered themselves with the help of digital media. Media Trust has awarded £500 awards to inspirational communities across the country whose work is helping to give the community a voice through digital media.

The awards form part of Media Trust’s Community Voices scheme, a nationwide campaign that aims to inspire, engage and support disadvantaged and isolated communities to get their voices heard through digital media.

Media Trust’s Director of Marketing and Communications Services, Gavin Sheppard, said, “It’s really exciting to see the wealth of digital media work going on in so many communities. These awards help to highlight that excellence as well as providing them with the means to further grow their work and inspire other communities to find their voice and make it heard.”

To find out more about Netbuddy visit www.Netbuddy.org.uk

To find out more about the Community Voices Scheme visit www.mediatrust.org/communityvoices

Notes to editors
For further information please contact Emma Sterland on 020 8677 7820 or email: [email protected]

www.Netbuddy.org.uk offers a place for parents, carers and professionals to swap practical tips and information about all aspects of learning disability. Netbuddy is a non-profit organisation, supported by trusts, foundations and private individuals.

A registered charity (charity number 1127905), the organisers work from subsidised offices and rely on fundraising contributions to meet their costs. None of the information gathered is used for commercial gain.

Media Trust is a national charity that believes everyone should have a voice and the opportunity to be heard. Media Trust works with media organisations and charities to enhance their communications and enable communities to find their voice.

Media Trust owns and runs Community Channel, the UK's only national channel to be run by a charity. Media Trust corporate members are BBC, Channel 4, Daily Mail and General Trust, Discovery Networks Europe, Google, Guardian Media Group, IPC Media, ITV plc, MTV Networks UK & Ireland, News International, OMD, Sky, Warner Bros and WPP. Go to www.mediatrust.org

Community Voices
Community Voices is an England-wide programme delivered by Media Trust and partners, which aims to support, inspire and empower communities who feel disadvantaged or isolated, with the confidence, skills, and access to resources that will enable them to find their voice and make it heard.