These awards celebrate the significant role grandparents play in the lives of their children and grandchildren. Traditionally the emotional backbone of the family, they now often offer financial stability too. The ‘21st Century Grandparenting’ study, conducted by over 50s insurance provider RIAS, found that half of the 12.4 million grandparents in the UK contribute up to a whopping £5,000 towards their grandchildren every year. On top of this, 60% of grandparents spend an average of over nine hours a week providing childcare for their grandchildren.

RIAS chose to back our awards to help reward those grandparents who provide such love and support, and recognise their often undervalued contribution to our society.

But with so many inspirational entries, choosing the winners was a difficult task for our judges. Valery McConnell, Editor of Yours, says, “We had a hard job just making the shortlist, never mind picking the finalists.” Janet Connor, Managing Director at RIAS, (pictured right) adds, “Judging the awards has been eye-opening. The standard of entries was outstanding, making it a tough decision to make.” They chose the winners together with broadcaster Janet Ellis, interim chief executive of charity Grandparents Plus, Denise Murphy, and Lynn Chesterman, chief executive of the Grandparents’ Association.

As a grandmother herself, broadcaster Janet Ellis (pictured right, mother of singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor) was proud to present the winners with their awards at a ceremony at the London Hilton Hotel. She says, “It was an absolute pleasure reading through so many lovely, heartfelt entries. I am so proud of the winners of all five categories – huge congratulations to them all. There are some really heart-warming characters out there, and some lucky grandchildren!”