Help us find the Pride of Guernsey

Every day hundreds of people among us are doing extraordinary things. For some it will be for family, friends or neighbours. For others it will simply all be in a day's work.

This new set of honours will be a way to say a very public thank-you to those thousands of islanders who don't qualify for existing awards or who miss out because there are no suitable ones available.

Our raft of accolades will finally be a way for us all to acknowledge and mark their often quiet, yet wonderful achievements.

Without them, our home would not be the special place it is. And with that in mind, these awards will have the Bailiwick at their heart.

Over the coming weeks, readers will be asked to nominate potential winners and we will feature every one of them in our newspaper and online.

You will be involved in the voting process too, helping to ensure the winners are your winners.

The categories include Emergency Hero of the Year (aimed at our 999 responders), Angel of the Year (for our medics and nurses), Neighbour of the Year, Carer of the Year, Parish Champion of the Year and Teacher of the Year.

We will also be searching for the Bailiwick's grandparents of the year, parents of the year, young achievers, those who make great contributions to our arts community, or who have overcome adversity, or those who – on behalf of our islands – roll out the welcome mat in style.

The Guernsey Press has also teamed up with an exclusive group of local businesses who have each become our official partners to sponsor the categories.

All have chosen an award which has relevance for them and each will be donating a prize worth £1,000 to the chosen winners.

Over the coming weeks we will shine a spotlight on the best in our Bailiwick with a special, unique awards event being planned in which the nominees will be the stars of the show.

The idea is one that Guernsey Press managing director Mark Lewis said the newspaper had long wanted to help make a reality: 'As part of the fabric of the island ourselves, we know how many people make our Bailiwick proud simply by being a part of it every single day. We, together with our Pride of Guernsey event partners, cannot wait to tell their stories and acknowledge their achievements.'

Guernsey Press deputy editor Suzanne Heneghan added: 'We expect to hear about some wonderful people over the coming weeks which will also make for an inspirational evening. These awards promise to be a showcase for all those islanders who deserve their own thank-you moments too and we are delighted to launch these awards on their behalf.'

From next week we will be outlining each of the categories in detail, showing how you can nominate and also speaking to our event partners about why they are sponsoring their particular award and what they will be looking for in the eventual winners.

There will also be other extensive coverage both in the paper, on our special prideofguernsey.com website that is linked to our Guernsey Press homepage and on our social media feeds.

The newspaper plans to see the event become a major part of the Bailiwick's calendar.

So please get ready to nominate via the special nomination forms which will be appearing in the paper and online from Monday.