Time is running out for community projects in Nottinghamshire to enter Yorkshire Bank’s Spirit of the Community Awards 2017 for a chance to share a funding boost of £75,000 to make a real difference in their local area.

Now in its fifth year, the awards programme was launched earlier this year to recognise and support community projects which are going the extra mile. Entries must be submitted by Monday, 6th March and the winners will be announced in summer 2017.

Registered charities and not for profit organisations are invited to enter their projects into the awards scheme under one of three categories: projects which help people to have a healthy relationship with money, projects which help people to improve their local environment and projects which help people into employment.

The awards are open to a range of initiatives across the third sector which can demonstrate support for the local community. This could include projects helping to upskill people for the workplace, ventures promoting healthy relationships with money, or schemes aiming to protect the environment.

Five projects will be selected in each of the three categories and all 15 winners will be awarded £5,000 each.

Debbie Crosbie, Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks Chief Operating Officer and Chair of the Yorkshire and Clydesdale Bank Foundation, said: “Yorkshire Bank’s Spirit of the Community Awards aim to recognise and support the vital contribution that voluntary and charitable projects make to their local communities and there is still time for groups in Nottinghamshire to enter.

“The standard of entries over the last four years has been fantastic and we look forward to continuing our support for local communities again this year.”

Yorkshire Bank’s sister organisation, Clydesdale Bank will also award £75,000 to support local projects in Scotland as part of the programme. This brings the total funds available for community initiatives up and down the country to £150,000.

For further information about the Yorkshire and Clydesdale Bank Foundation’s Spirit of the Community Awards or to enter, people can visit www.ybonline.co.uk/foundation or go into their local Yorkshire Bank branch to receive an application form.