Community Champions Honoured at Newtown Awards Ceremony

Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn Town Council hosted their annual Celebration of Newtown Awards 2025 at Theatre Hafren, recognising individuals, groups and organisations that have made a positive impact on the town and surrounding area over the past year.

Mayor Pete Lewington opened the evening by highlighting the importance of acknowledging community champions and celebrating the remarkable talents, acts of kindness and accomplishments of local residents and businesses. 

"This year we saw once again some excellent stories of those nominated for the awards being presented this evening – again highlighting the talent and kindness in our town," said Cllr Lewington.

The Mayor introduced his chosen charities, Rekindle and the Street Pastors, who received warm applause for their pivotal roles in supporting community members.

The first award of the evening recognised the collaborative work between Citizens Advice Powys and Newtown & Llanllwchaiarn Town Council, with Yasmin Bell, CEO at Citizens Advice Powys, presenting the award to Ponthafren.

The Community Fund Recognition Awards honoured local organisations that have received vital funding through the council's Community Grant programme. The 22 recipients were:

Knit and Natter Newtown, 2nd Newtown Guides Unit, Hub of Hope Foundation, Newtown Robert Owen Scout Group, Creative Stuff Newtown CIC, Arts Connection, Montgomeryshire Family Crisis Centre, Textile Junkies Ltd, Hafren Theatre, Rekindle Home, St Marys Catholic Primary School, Mentor Men Wales, Open Newtown, Newtown Food Surplus, Treowen Community Hall, Bike to the Future, Newtown & District Dial a Ride, Newtown Community Café, 1st Newtown Rainbows, Heritage Hub 4 Mid Wales, Men Shed Newtown, and Cultivate.

Councillor Richard Edwards presented awards across several categories including Employers of On-Call Firefighters, Volunteer of the Year, Creative Arts, Young Person or Youth Group of the Year, Business Innovation & Enterprise, Third Sector, Leisure, Tourism & Hospitality, Climate & Sustainability, and Sports Award.

In the Sports category, Stephen Lewis took home the top honour, with Newtown Cricket Club as runner-up. Newtown Food Surplus won the Climate & Sustainability Award, while siblings Amber, Max and Lexi Layton-Morris were recognised as Young Person/Youth Group winners.

David Checkley was named Volunteer of the Year, with Eric Edwards as runner-up. In the business categories, Philip Harris Supastikers/Supasplashers Mid Wales won for Innovation & Enterprise, Game Changer took the Third Sector award, and Hafan yr Afon was recognised in the Leisure, Tourism & Hospitality category.

The Creative Arts Award went to Steve Edwards of Newton Silver Band, with Newtown Amateur Dramatic Society named as runner-up.

The event celebrated the breadth of talent, commitment and community spirit that continues to thrive in Newtown, showcasing the many individuals and organisations working to make a positive difference in the local area. 

See more photos on our Facebook page.