DOWNPATRICK and County Down Railway is delighted with its success at the Social Enterprise NI Awards 2024.
One of the heritage railway’s stalwart volunteers, Morgan Young, was crowned as the NI Emerging Leader of the Year, while Downpatrick and County Down Railway (DCDR) was named NI Social Enterprise of the Year.
The ceremony took place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Belfast last Friday night.
For each award they were nominated for, they faced stiff competition.
“In the Emerging Leader category, Morgan was up against very impressive nominees from groups such as Aspire NI, which supports media creativity around the Coleraine area, and Farset Labs, which operates a workshop to encourage technological learning and creativity,” explained a spokesperson for DCDR.
“However, Morgan’s exceptional résumé as an emerging leader within DCDR was hard to beat, and it came as a surprise to no-one on our team when he came out on top.
“Morgan has been volunteering with us since his early teens, and his work both as a volunteer and a leader is too significant to be put into words.
“In addition to spending much of his time working on and maintaining our three steam locomotives, keeping alive a tradition passed on to him by the late Bob Edwards, Morgan’s can-do attitude is exemplified by his willingness to lend a hand across any part of the railway, be it track work, carriage restoration, guiding tours, or acting as duty manager on our running days.
“Moreover, at the age of just 18 he became our Operations Manager, a role which he has held for almost eight years and has seen him play a significant role in everything from issuing operation circulars to organising dozens of our events and even facilitating the filming of ‘Derry Girls’ at DCDR in 2021.
“The whole railway is thrilled that Morgan’s exceptional dedication to DCDR, and to our steam locomotives in particular, and his role as a young leader has been recognised on a national stage.”
Morgan said it was “a huge honour” to win the award.
“It’s very welcome good news for the railway after such a difficult year, and testament to the opportunities I’ve been given through volunteering at DCDR,” he stated.
“I’m extremely grateful to my colleagues, both for the surprise nomination and for providing me with the leadership opportunities and mentoring over the years.
“Without them I couldn’t have won, and so if you ask me this award is as much theirs as it is mine”.
And there was further cause for celebration, with the heritage railway winning the Social Enterprise of the Year (Under £500k) Award.
The judges highlighted the resolve that its volunteers showed in their hard work during the process of recovering from last autumn’s devastating flooding, as well as the focus on accommodating passengers with disabilities and passing skills and traditions between generations.
DCDR chairman Robert Gardiner said: “Winning the Social Enterprise of the Year award – one of the most coveted prizes in these awards – is a huge endorsement of the work we’ve done and our impact in the community.
“And to come away with two awards – with Morgan as Emerging Leader – is just incredible.
“A big congratulations to all our volunteers, as without your efforts this simply wouldn’t have happened.”