Streets Ahead 2021: Search begins for Glasgow's greenest groups and most inspiring individuals

With the support of Glasgow City Council, City Charitable Trust, People Make Glasgow Greener and City Building, our initiative has been shining a light on groups and individuals going the extra mile for Glasgow since 2011.

Earlier this week we revealed Streets Ahead would be back for a terrific tenth year, with added emphasis on environmental projects as we head towards the climate change conference COP26 in Glasgow this winter.

Today we are delighted to let you know our annual awards event will also return – albeit in a slightly different format from previous years given the ongoing restrictions surrounding Covid - and with an exciting new category.

Life in Glasgow has been very different over the last 12 months. The message at the heart of our campaign and the awards celebration remains the same, however.

We want to reward and pay tribute to the local heroes who make a difference in every corner of the city.

Locavore, winner of the Glasgow City Council Green Business Award in 2019

To nominate yourself or someone else for a Streets Ahead award, visit the dedicated awards website at newsquestscotlandevents.com/events/streetsahead.

Entry is free and the closing date for nominations is Wednesday, May 12.

We will be awarding eight prizes, including an overall winner, to be announced at a special virtual ceremony in June.

More details about the event will be revealed soon.

New for the 2021 awards is the People Make Glasgow Greener Award.

Pacitti Garden, which won Best Community Garden in the 2019 awards.

Many people in Glasgow go above and beyond to keep streets, parks, businesses, and communities cleaner and more environmentally friendly.

As COP26, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, comes to the city in November, this category has been introduced as part of the city’s People Make Glasgow Greener strategy.

We want to reward an individual who gets involved in positive action to ensure the city is greener for all. Perhaps they organise recycling drives at work or school, or are the driving force behind a community initiative, or work with neighbours to keep their own street clean?

Whatever they do, this award will go to a person who steps up or speaks out to make Glasgow greener.

The Cranhill Cabin, which triumphed in the Best Community Initiative category in 2019

The other categories are as follows:

Best Clean Up Campaign:

This section celebrates the best clean-up initiatives taking place across the city. We want to hear from people who have come together to tidy up their local area, whether it’s a street, gardens, allotments or even a park. We will be looking for campaigns to demonstrate what has been achieved for the whole community. Open to individuals and groups.

Best Community Garden:

Have you created a beautiful community garden that everyone has grown to love? Maybe you turned some derelict land into an oasis of peace and planting, or perhaps your community needed a growing space? We want to hear about how they were set up, who benefits and why they deserve to win.

Glasgow City Council Environmental Initiative:

The climate crisis is on everyone’s mind. This award will be presented to the city’s best ‘green’ project, whether it’s a recycling scheme, a road safety initiative or something completely different. We want applicants to demonstrate what environmental benefits their projects have had for the community.

Glasgow City Council Green Business Award:

We’re looking for a Glasgow business, large or small, which has played its part in keeping Glasgow clean and green. It could be through recycling initiatives or waste management, or by getting involved in community projects that aim to improve the local area for everyone.

Best Community Initiative:

Across Glasgow, communities are banding together to improve their local areas for the benefit of everyone who lives and works there. We want to hear about the most exceptional examples of initiatives which encourage people to work together, making a positive difference to people’s lives.

Schools Award:

This award will be presented to a school – nursery, primary, secondary or assisted support for learning – which can demonstrate what contribution it has made to its local community. It could be through regular clean-ups, eco-friendly initiatives or gardening – the sky is the limit…

Remember to apply before the closing date of May 12.