Sense Awards 2023
Check out some of our amazing previous winners. You can also see our winners from 2022.
Chapman Shum
Chapman Shum won Young Person of the Year at the Sense Awards 2023.
An exceptionally talented pianist, Chapman has made a strong connection with his new friend Gabby, who Chapman was matched with through Sense’s virtual buddying programme.
The pair have bonded over their shared love of music.
Lenny Rush
Lenny Rush is a talented young actor who won Celebrity of the Year at the Sense Awards 2023.
Lenny has used his appearances in the media to talk about being disabled and how important it is for disabled actors to have equal opportunities to go for roles as their non-disabled counterparts.
Person of the Year
Winner: Paige Barnes
Paige lives with Usher Syndrome and is passionate about educating the public about deafblindness. Paige’s family discovered she was deaf at a young age and she communicates in both English and British Sign Language (BSL). However, Paige only found out she had Usher syndrome and was losing her sight at the age of 17.
This was a huge shock to her and very scary, made worse by the inaccessibility of the medical system which meant she was not told about her diagnosis in an accessible way. However, Paige was determined to keep seeing friends and going to college and says she wouldn’t now change anything about her life.
She’s now working at Heathrow Airport, is in a romantic relationship and living life to the fullest, and Paige has shared her story in the news to inspire others.
Young Sibling of the Year
Winner: Thea Nisbet
Thea has just turned six and is already helping her parents look after her little brother Troy, who is two and was born with CHARGE syndrome.
For Thea, her brother’s arrival during lockdown was a huge upheaval – unable to meet him for six months, she lived in a room in a Ronald McDonald House near the hospital.
Troy has been through multiple life-saving operations, which was stressful for the whole family, and now needs 24-hour care. Thea never complains, but instead helps by alerting her parents when she thinks Troy needs suction or swiftly bringing swabs and by always being a great big sister.
Family Carer of the Year
Winner: Julie Proud
Julie is a carer with a can-do attitude and huge desire to make positive changes for family carers. Her adult daughter, Natalie, is partially sighted and has cerebral palsy and learning disabilities.
A mum-of-three, Julie has spent her life putting her children first and she and her husband work round the clock to make sure Natalie has a happy life. Despite the challenges, Julie always focuses on what her family can do rather than what they can’t.
She also found time to support Sense’s Give Carers A Break campaign, even giving live radio and TV interviews to help raise awareness of what it’s really like to be a family carer.
Campaigner of the Year
Winner: Anna Tesdale
Anna cares for her three children, including her oldest, Charlie, who is 21. Charlie was diagnosed at 16 with a genetic condition called SPG11 and this had an impact on Anna’s energy bills and overall costs during the cost of living crisis. Anna had to balance her other children’s needs whilst prioritising Charlie’s comfort as he cannot regulate his own temperature.
These experiences led Anna to share her experiences with Sense and bravely tell her story to the media to raise awareness of the issue. Since then she’s become a regular campaigner, attending Westminster and Number 10 to share her experience and hand in Sense’s cost of living petition, writing to her MP and supporting our 2023 call for more support for carers as part of Sense’s Give Carers A Break campaign.
Volunteer of the Year
Winner: Owen Graham
Owen, 82, began volunteering in the Sense shop in Sheffield when it opened four years ago, and it has become his full-time passion. Described by his workmates as “the backbone of the shop”, he often works seven days a week when the store is short-staffed.
In his free time, he takes children’s toys and watches home to test and fit with batteries he buys himself, so he is sure they are ready to use. A retired dispensing optician, who has hearing loss in one ear, he says Sense as a charity stands for all the things he believes in.
The local community hugely appreciates the work Owen does and customers are always quick to ask when he will be back, if he has a rare day off.
Fundraiser of the Year
Winner: Summa Clarke
Summa is a young woman who has faced many health problems and has multiple disabilities, including blindness and hearing loss. However, she hasn’t let these stop her being an active volunteer and fundraiser for Sense.
She most recently shaved her head on a charity shop floor, to raise money for Sense and Dog Squad in advance of her life-changing brain surgery.
Influencer of the Year
Winner: Jeffie Smith
Jeffie is a content creator and disability activist, who uses her social media channels, like Twitch and Instagram, to raise awareness of the challenges disabled people can face.
Her content often tackles difficult topics like disability hate crime, discrimination and ableism, and aims to educate people.
Jeffie, who uses a wheelchair, recently shared her experiences of coming out as queer and how dating another disabled person has opened her eyes to the ways homophobia and ableism intersect.
Journalism of the Year
Winner: Ruben Reuter
Previously a regular face on CBBC as a cast member of drama The Dumping Ground, Ruben is now a cornerstone of Channel 4 News.
As a young man with Down’s Syndrome, Ruben has brought a new dimension to the show since joining in 2021, putting the challenges faced by disabled people centre stage and giving a voice to communities often unheard in mainstream news programmes.
One of Ruben’s key interviews last year was with Oscar-winning actor and film-maker James Martin, who also has Down’s Syndrome – the pair talked candidly about disability funding cut fears. He has also tackled the impact of Covid on disabled people and co-presented Disability And Abortion: The Hardest Choice with actor and campaigner Ruth Madeley.
Community Partner of the Year
Winner: Chasetown Civil Engineering
Chasetown Civil Engineering has been working closely with Sense to create a new, accessible sensory garden at Sense Touchbase Pears in Birmingham.
The new garden will benefits hundreds of people who use the charity’s services in the Midlands and will be used for a whole host of activities include Sense College sports days, meditations and picnics, and as a space people can enjoy, have their lunchbreaks and relax.
The difference Chasetown has made to disabled people in the Midlands will be with us for many years to come.