You may recall that I introduced a ‘Local Heroes’ award a few years ago. This was to recognise the enormous work, usually unsung, usually with a great deal of passion and commitment and almost certainly without any wish for reward that many people in Hartlepool provide to their communities. The Local Heroes award was also in response to an honours list a couple of years ago, in which no one from Hartlepool was recognised, which I thought failed to take into account the great work that’s done in this town.

Two ladies have won my Local Heroes award since it was established. Isabel Wilson was a very worthy first winner, who helped to establish the Pansies Support Group for ladies diagnosed with breast cancer. The Group continues to go from strength to strength. Liz Barraclough was the equally worthy second winner, in recognition of the great and energetic work that she undertook, not only as a great mother to Eleanor, but who also by finding time to be chair of governors at Springfield School and to be a member of Hartlepool Council’s children services scrutiny forum.

I have this week announced the third winner of the Local Heroes award. John, or Taffy, as he is known, Southcott, is the Chairman of the Heugh Gun Battery Trust on the Headland.

People will remember only a few years ago what the Battery looked like on the Headland. It was a huge eyesore, a magnet for drinking, drug taking and vandalism. It was somewhat embarrassing to the entire town, a real tragic shame given the importance it had played in the defence of the coastline. This was especially true during the famous bombardment of 16 December 1914, when Hartlepool was the first place on the mainland to be attacked during the First World War.

The likes of Taffy and others, including Pat Price, who is no longer with us, thought that this wasn’t good enough. They decided over a drink or two that the Gun Battery should be restored. This seemed to most people an impossible idea, something that couldn’t be done. I heard people say that it might be best if the whole area was razed to the ground and made into an extension of the Town Moor.

Taffy and others simply refused to be beaten. For the best part of ten years he has begged, negotiated, bullied, cajoled and persuaded people from across the town and up and down the country to get involved and to provide the Trust with valuable artefacts of military history. He managed to persuade the BBC’s Restoration programme to put the Battery on its list of appeals, something it narrowly failed to win in its heats. And, perhaps most importantly of all, he persuaded the Lottery to provide £315,000 of funding to help restore it to a very high standard. The Battery opened its doors to the public a couple of weeks ago, and is a real asset not only to the Headland, but for the whole of Hartlepool.

Taffy was nominated for the award by his wife Mandy. For their troubles, they have won two train tickets to London, courtesy of Grand Central, and a meal for two at Ocean restaurant.

The reason Taffy won was for the fact that the whole project was community-led, that people like Taffy and others achieved something through their passion, ambition, dedication and love for their area and for what they are doing. That sums up to me the very essence of all that is good about Hartlepool.

The town is full of people like Taffy. Over the past week alone, I have met really passionate people like Tom Stewart of the Rossmere Residents’ Group, who has just secured nearly £10,000 of funding, Veronica Gardner, who pulled together with Cllr Mary Fleet and others the fun day in Dyke House at the weekend, or Anne Hall and the other ladies of the St Cuthbert’s Area Residents’ Association. I do think we in Hartlepool have more than our fair share of people who give tirelessly for the community. All of these people and more deserve support, recognition and thanks for what they do. In order to do so, I hope to introduce a regular local heroes scheme soon. But in the meantime, I’d like to salute Taffy Southcott and the Heugh Gun Battery Trust for making a real asset out of an eyesore.