PEOPLE going out of their way to help their village community have been honoured in a brand new awards ceremony.

South Petherton residents picked up prizes in the new mayor’s awards night, set up by Cllr Adam Dance.

The inaugural awards recognised the local Men’s Shed group, a lunch club for elderly villagers, and a number of volunteers.

Cllr Dance said: “There’s so many people in South Petherton helping the community, but no one realises who they are, so I took it upon myself to set the awards up.

“The parish council is here to support the community, so lets give something back to those who deserve it.”

The Men’s Shed was nominated by Steve Burns, who said his membership had been a great help to getting back to a normal life after a stroke.

He said: “The members are helpful and friendly. Nothing is too much trouble. It’s good to get out for a couple of hours.”

Cllr Dance added: “The Men’s Shed is there to support people - normally an older generation, people with dementia or strokes or are generally lonely.

“The amount of work they do in the community is enormous. This recognises the volunteers who run it and put in countless hours.”

Individual awards went to community woodland volunteer Fin Hodson Wright, carnival fundraiser Nicki Grenville, scout worker Tim Burch and community stalwart Malcolm Lake.