THE Vale Learning Festival Group have hosted their first awards ceremony.

On Thursday, June 19, at Barry Memorial Hall the Inspire Awards for Learning Journeys event celebrated the learning journeys of all the local people who had been nominated for the National NIACE Dysgu Cymru awards in Llandudno.

Each nominee was presented with a certificate and their story was read to the audience, which included Jane Hutt AM and MP Alun Cairns.

Awards were presented during the evening by the Vale of Glamorgan Mayor Hamilton.

Colette Chilcott, chairman of the Vale Learning Network, said: “We were delighted to see so many people at the event to help us celebrate all of the fantastic things the local adult learners have achieved.

"It was a great opportunity to give people the recognition they deserve and to inspire others to learn a new skill. Choosing the winners for the awards was an almost impossible task."

Learner awards were given to Adam Harvey who was nominated by Itec for Learning at Work and Clare Tyne who was nominated by Putting Families First.

The Gail Hughes award for learning in the community, which will be an annual award in memory of a lady who worked with the Vale Community Development Network for over 10 years and who sadly died recently, was given to the Vale 50 plus Strategy Forum.