Congratulations to Year 9 Aspire student Lyssa, pictured above, who was totally surprised to receive the Make a Difference award for Young Carer 2021 at the weekend.

The idea of the Make a Difference Awards is to recognise unsung heroes from across the county, with entries being sought in a variety of categories. They are designed to reflect everything from good neighbours to voluntary work.

Nominations are judged by a panel led by BBC Radio Lancashire's Managing Editor, Andrew Bowman: "We want to celebrate the wonderful people of Lancashire and the amazing work so many do in the local community. As they do every year, we hope our listeners get behind our Make a Difference Awards and nominate someone who means something to them, for whatever reason.”

Lyssa was nominated in The Young Carer Award Category that is awarded to someone aged 17 or under who improves the life of an individual or group of people by caring for them on a regular basis. In Lyssa’s case she has been looking after her mum and brother, who are both disabled, for the last three years cooking meals, sorting washing and ironing, cleaning and all those other jobs that need doing around the home. And when she’s not caring or doing her homework she likes to help them get out for a walk around their local community.

Lyssa said: “I can’t believe I’ve been presented with this award, it’s lovely. And I still don’t know who nominated me!”