Stars Turn Out For Mencap Awards Ceremony

I received the press release below earlier today from Mencap.

 Gavin and Stacy actor Mathew Horne, Dancing on Ice star Chloe Madeley and Elliot Rosen the actor who plays Craig Moon in EastEnders were among the stars who turned out for the awards for Mencap’s annual film and photography competition Snap!, in London last night (Tuesday, 13 September).

They joined nearly 200 guests who attended the learning disability charity’s ceremony at the Rich Mix arts centre in Shoreditch, east London.

Mathew Horne, Mencap ambassador said: “It was a great night and I was very impressed by the quality of the entries. I had the chance to meet some fantastic people and hear about their experiences first hand, which reminded me why I support the great work of Mencap.”

There were 36 winners in total, from across the UK.  All entries were taken of or by people with a learning disability. Among them was a photograph of Stacey Foster with her friend Graham. Graham always manages to get a response from Stacey even though she can’t speak. Another striking image is of Iain Frost, who is pictured realising his ambition of swimming with dolphins in Cuba.

Stacey Foster’s mum, Margaret, said: “We were blown away when we heard that Stacey‘s picture had won an award. It isn’t very often that something nice happens in our lives so we were really excited to be part of the evening’s event.”

The competition, sponsored by FUJIFILM UK Ltd and The Sorrell Foundation, saw judges study more than 600 entries to pick 32 photographs and four films as this year’s winners. Prizes were awarded in gold, silver, bronze and highly commended categories.

Mencap’s chief executive Mark Goldring said: “The judges had a really difficult time choosing the winners this year, as there were so many outstanding entries and some very touching stories to accompany them.  The competition continues to be successful because people with a learning disability are often invisible in our society, but this competition gives them the chance to capture images that reflect their lives, allowing others to gain a greater understanding.”

The winners received state-of-the-art digital FUJIFILM cameras and high street vouchers. Additional special prizes were also given by FUJIFILM to four images they considered to convey the essence of what the Snap! awards are about.

The photographs will now go on display at FUJIFILM’s headquarters in Bedford from 19 – 23 September 2011 and later at the Rich Mix gallery from 2 – 5 October 2011. There will also be an interactive online gallery www.myfinepix.co.uk/blog.

The full range of images, films and accompanying stories will also be on the Mencap website www.mencap.org.uk/snap.

For further information, contact Louise Toms in the Mencap media team on 020 7696 6950 or email louise.toms@mencap.org.uk.