Over 150 members of voluntary and community groups came to came an event organised by Derbyshire County Council to celebrate the work of charities.

The Big Society in Action event highlighted the good work being done by charities and voluntary groups as well as launching two new Conservative lead Derbyshire county council grants.

Conservative Councillor Carol Hart, Cabinet Member for Public Health said:

"It was wonderful to meet so many people who give up their time to help others in their communities.  Those that volunteer make our communities better places to live, work and visit. 

"The evening celebrated the work that voluntary groups carry out in Derbyshire.

"We also launched two new grants - Community Building Grant and Youth Action Grant − which were well received by the audience."

The Youth Action Grant will help voluntary groups to run activities for young people in their area. These could be sports activities, music groups, drama groups, discos or social activities.  More information at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/yag

And the Community Building Grant will offer one-off grants of £10,000 to £250,000 to fund community building projects or permanent equipment such as play or sports facilities.  More information at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/build

Two other county council grants were also discussed at the event.  The Community Action Grant offers up to a maximum of £1,000 to help local groups make their ideas happen.  More information  at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/cag

The Sports Action Grant gives up to £1,000 to groups to provide activities that encourage pople to take part in sport and physical activities.  More information at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/sag