The next Isle of Man Newspapers’ Awards for Excellence is going to look very different from any year that has gone before.

’This has been such an extraordinary year for everyone so we decided to tear up the rule book and introduce lots of new award categories. The idea was to broaden it out and give the Awards more of a community feel,’ said Isle of Man Newspapers’ deputy chairman Trudi Williamson.

They have also given a nod to the events of 2020 with award categories including Doing the Impossible During the Pandemic and Our Local Heroes.

How many businesses do you know of all sizes who have pivoted to an online offering and delivery service during lockdown?

How many frontline and key workers who carried on providing healthcare, transport, utilities, retail and all the other service our community needed?

This year’s awards offer the chance for all of these people and businesses, who did things they probably never thought they could do before, to be recognised.

Teams Working Together is another new category along with Third Sector Supporting Our Community. Many teams, charitable organisations and individuals have gone the extra mile this year to engage with those people suffering from loneliness and isolation during the pandemic.

It also reflects the Isle of Man Government’s wellbeing initiative, Are You OK?, launched during lockdown to reach out to those suffering from anxiety and other mental health issues.

A couple of award categories that were introduced last year, Nurturing Our Arts, Culture and Heritage and Protecting Our Environment proved to be very popular and they are again included in this year’s line up.

Mrs Williamson said: ’We have also deliberately drawn up the list of awards so that several are complementary which means that an individual or business could quite easily enter two or three different categories.’

Another thing that has changed this year is the timetable for the event.

Mrs Williamson said: ’We decided in the summer that it was not appropriate to have people competing against each other this year so we have moved the event on four months, launching in October with the awards night on March 19, 2021.

’This will be an important event for the Isle of Man as we start to look to forward to a more positive future, and we would encourage as many people as possible to enter.

’And if you need any advice about which category to enter and what makes a good entry you can call me on 695694.’

Here’s how you can enter: This year’s awards offer opportunities for individuals, businesses of all sizes, public sector teams and charitable organisations to enter. You can find a full list of all the award categories at http://www.excellence-awards.im/.

Entries for the awards close on Friday, January 15, 2021.