Eight categories, from Unsung Hero to Community Club of the Year, and a ceremony at Rayleigh on 3 November. Nominations close on Friday 11 September.

Nominations for the 2026 Brentwood and Rochford Sports Awards close on Friday 11 September, leaving just over three weeks to put forward a coach, club, volunteer or athlete. There are eight categories, and anyone can nominate: residents, clubs and community organisations alike (Brentwood Borough Council).

The awards are run jointly by Brentwood Borough Council and Rochford District Council, with Everyone Active as headline sponsor. The ceremony for shortlisted nominees is on Tuesday 3 November at the Mill Arts and Events Centre, Bellingham Lane, Rayleigh.

Who can be nominated

The person or group must live in Brentwood borough or Rochford district, or be involved in or a member of a local club or organisation there. That wording matters: a coach who lives outside the borough but runs a Brentwood club is eligible.

The eight categories

Rochford District Council hosts the nomination form and publishes the criteria for each award. In short:

  • Sports Personality of the Year. An athlete who has made a significant impact over the last year at county, regional, national or international level, individually or in a team.
  • Young Sports Personality of the Year. The same test, for under-18s.
  • Coach of the Year. Any kind of coach, including class instructors, who has been a driving force behind the achievements of those they work with.
  • Community Club of the Year. A local club that has developed significantly or performed well over the last year.
  • Unsung Hero. An adult volunteer who has made an outstanding contribution to local sport.
  • Young Volunteer. The same, for under-18s.
  • Inclusive Communities. A team, club, organisation or individual that has broken down barriers and created spaces where everyone can take part.
  • Changing Lives through Sport and Physical Activity. Anyone who has improved lives through a sport, activity or health project, including getting inactive people active.

The council says all the awards are inclusive and that nominations of all abilities and impairments are encouraged (Rochford District Council).

One thing to check before you nominate

The published criteria set the age tests against 1 September 2025, not 2026. Sports Personality of the Year and Unsung Hero require the nominee to be 18 or over on that date, and the two youth categories require them to be under 18 on it. If your nominee turned 18 during the past year, that single date decides which category they belong in, so it is worth confirming before you file.

Queries go to the council’s Active Brentwood team at Activebrentwood@brentwood.gov.uk.

Three dates that matter 29 June Nominations open Fri 11 September Nominations close the deadline Tue 3 November Awards evening, Rayleigh Source: Brentwood Borough Council and Rochford District Council. Graphic by Brentwood Online.
Graphic by Brentwood Online

What it means for you

If you know a club volunteer who has quietly kept a Brentwood team running, the Unsung Hero and Young Volunteer categories exist precisely for people who never put themselves forward. Nobody else will nominate them.

Three practical points:

  • The deadline is Friday 11 September 2026, and it is a hard closing date rather than a rolling one.
  • The nomination form sits on the Rochford District Council website, not Brentwood’s, which is where people most often get stuck.
  • Only shortlisted nominees are invited to the ceremony on 3 November, so a nomination is not an automatic ticket.

Councillor Dr Tim Barrett, chair of Brentwood’s Housing, Health and Community Committee, said the borough is “full of dedicated individuals and clubs who are making a real difference through sport, often without the recognition they deserve”.

More on sport and activity in the borough is on our things to do in Brentwood page.

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