Oxfordshire woman in the final for this year’s JustGiving Awards

A charity founded by a woman from Oxfordshire has been named as a finalist in this year’s Charity Of The Year category for the GoCardless JustGiving Awards, in recognition of its achievements.

ShowerBox was founded by Sarah Lamptey from Bladon in Oxfordshire and was selected for its work revolutionising hygiene for the streets and hidden homeless in Central London by creating free and secure shower space in the form of mobile shower units.

The charity was chosen as a finalist by a panel of judges which included Radio DJ Rickie Haywood-Williams, Actress Angela Griffin, longstanding fundraiser, famous for wearing a charity shop outfit every day for one year, Caroline Jones and the general manager of JustGiving, Pascale Harvie.

ShowerBox helps empower homeless people to maintain good personal hygiene, build confidence and stop the spread of disease. For the past five years, it has raised over £41,000 to fund “ShowerBox Saturdays”, where people leave with a renewed sense of humanity and self-esteem. Since the charity was founded in 2018 it has provided thousands of showers for homeless people in London, and the charity has just crowdfunded £25,000 to buy a trailer facility for a new Birmingham site.

Sarah Lamptey MBE, ShowerBox Project Leader said: “It’s really special to have been nominated for this award as JustGiving is where it all began! We are now five years in and have given thousands of showers, supporting our guests with their vital self-care. My team of volunteers put a lot of work and love into ShowerBox, so this wonderful recognition is for them.”

This is the eleventh year of the JustGiving Awards and the judges agreed that this year’s event will be an incredibly emotional yet truly inspiring evening. As well JustGiving’s Charity Of The Year, 21 inspiring finalists have been shortlisted from more than 13,000 nominations – three for each of the additional seven awards categories.

Pascale Harvie, President and General Manager at JustGiving said: “Our charities, fundraisers and crowdfunders are amazing and whilst they don’t do what they do for praise and recognition, every single person and charity like ShowerBox deserves it.

“The ceremony is a magical evening but most importantly it’s a moment for us at JustGiving to thank, formally recognise and celebrate the individuals, groups and charities who have done extraordinary things in the interest of others.”

Members of the public now have the opportunity to vote for the finalist they want to see crowned for their efforts via: https://page.justgiving.com/awardsvoting2023

The winners will be announced at the ceremony which takes place at London’s Roundhouse on the evening of September 25th, where they will be presented with their official trophy by well-known faces from the world of celebrities and sport.

Previous JustGiving Award winners include Max Woosey, who was crowned 2022 Young Fundraiser of the Year for camping outside for hundreds of nights in memory of his neighbour and raising funds for North Devon Hospice.

Three dads walking were awarded Fundraising Team of the Year for raising significant awareness for suicide prevention and funds for Papyrus and the late Dame Deborah James’ family received a special recognition award after she created wide-scale awareness of Bowel cancer and its symptoms and raised millions of pounds for the Bowelbabe Fund.

Pat Phelan, MD of UK & Ireland and Chief Customer Officer at GoCardless added: “We’re proud to recognise the finalists and everyone nominated for this year’s GoCardless JustGiving Awards. We’re also grateful to all of the donors who support them. By combining the energy and enthusiasm of charities like ShowerBox with the generosity of the nation, truly amazing things can happen.”