It is time to honour Cumbria's heroes of the floods - and we need you to tell us who yours are.

Today, we launch our #SpiritofCumbria Awards to recognise and thank those who gave us their all when we needed them most.

To do that, we'd like you to tell us who your heroes are and why they deserve recognition.

Never before has there been a county-wide response like there was when Storm Desmond caused devastation across the county in December.

People rallied to help those in need, joining rescue, response and recovery teams to help those trapped in or being forced to flee their homes as floodwaters rose.

Emergency services worked around the clock to help the stricken, volunteers manned emergency response centres, collected clothes, organised food donations, mass clean-ups and fundraisers to help those left with nothing.

Many even put aside the fact that their own homes were flooding to help others.

The response and Cumbria's determination not to be beaten by all that the elements could throw at the county was nothing short of outstanding.

That #SpiritofCumbria - as it trended online as part of a hugely successful social media campaign to galvanise support for those affected by the disaster - drew praise from across the world.

And it is that spirit and goodwill that we want to celebrate - as well as applauding the tremendous rate of recovery that has been witnessed county-wide in the months that have followed the floods.

The #SpiritofCumbria Awards organised by CN Group, with the support of Sellafield Ltd and United Utilities, will thank all those who did so much to help so many.

Sellafield Ltd is delighted to be supporting the awards.

Head of socio-economics Helen Fisher said: "When adversity struck last December, our county proved once again that in difficult times we pull together and look after each other. 

"Cumbria has an incredibly bright future as one of the world’s most beautiful, creative and friendly places to live and work.

"These awards will offer an opportunity to recognise the local heroes who emerged during those tough times and helped put us on the road to recovery." 

To recognise those heroes, we're appealing for readers to tell us who is worthy of special recognition and a public thank you.

Making a nomination is simple, just fill out the form on the Spirit page

Rules & conditions of entry

  • Closing date: TBC
  • Submitted material cannot be returned and will be disposed of as confidential waste
  • By submitting your entry you accept the editor’s decision regarding publication and promotion of details of finalists and winners
  • The judges will select up to three finalists in each category who, in their opinion, best meet the criteria listed
  • Employees of all CN Group companies are not eligible to enter these awards but are eligible to nominate
  • The judges’ decision is final in all matters
  • We are unable to enter into any individual correspondence regarding entries received, judges’ comments, finalists or winners
  • Judges reserve the right to move an entry into a different category if they deem it appropriate
  • As part of our safeguarding policy, shortlisted finalists may be subject to a verbal reference from their current employer
  • Up to two A4 sheets of additional information can be included with the entry form. We cannot accept brochures, leaflets, CDs or DVDs as supporting material