Clubmark accredited Richmond Volleyball Club, based in Richmond, South West London, has won the coveted Sports Club of the Year award at CCPRs national awards ceremony. This first place trophy and £6,000 prize money, presented this year by Olympic champion Rebecca Romero, is awarded to clubs who have made an outstanding contribution to their community.

CCPR - which represents the national governing bodies of sport and recreation -recognises sports clubs which have made an outstanding contribution within their community in association with the Foundation for Sport and the Arts (FSA) and runningsports.

The awards ceremony, held in Tower Hill, London, celebrated six finalists who all demonstrated exceptional commitment and dedication to making sports accessible and fun for all. The winners were awarded cash prizes between £1,000 and £6,000.

Richmond Volleyball Club triumphed over stiff competition from five other finalists. The club itself is run efficiently and effectively by volunteers who give countless hours of their time to create opportunities for the local community to play, volunteer, coach, officiate and most importantly enjoy the sport of volleyball. As a direct result of their efforts, volleyball is now well established as a major sport on the PE agenda for 24 secondary schools, across three boroughs. In total, over 400 people regularly play volleyball in the community, in school clubs, the South London Volleyball League, junior and students teams, regional and NVL teams. In addition, they have introduced sitting volleyball and made it available through seven free sessions with quality coaching at three venues in two local boroughs.

Tim Lamb, CCPR chief executive, said:

"The Sports Club of the Year award is something that CCPR is proud to present to our community sports clubs. It is humbling and inspiring to see the work that volunteers and staff do, dedicating their time and energy to encouraging participation in sport, whatever the level. It is particularly admirable to see the efforts and successes that are achieved in these straightened economic times, and CCPR is honoured to celebrate these achievements tonight."

There are over 160,000 sports clubs across the country and for Richmond Volleyball Club to come out on top is a fabulous and well-deserved achievement and all associated with the club should feel very proud indeed.

Richard Callicott, President of Volleyball England said:

"The success of Richmond VC and national recognition this award brings is a fantastic way to highlight the progress volleyball is making as an established sport in England, highlighted by the number of great clubs offering opportunities for everyone to experience a vibrant enjoyable sport. I would like to congratulate every member of Richmond VC for their fantastic achievement and wish all volleyball clubs success in trying to match these achievements over the coming years.

Vera Kenyon from Richmond Volleyball Club said:

"We are delighted with the award and would like to thank CCPR for recognition of our efforts to involve a wider community into the sport and regular physical activity. All our plans this year became a reality as a result of tremendous dedication from the club volunteers. We would like to thank them all for being the heart and soul of Richmond Volleyball. It is their passion for volleyball and generous sharing of their time, knowledge and skills that has made Richmond Volleyball a true club for all.