What a night! The winners of the first Gloucestershire Lifestyle & Community Awards were revealed at a dazzling ceremony at Pittville Pump Room on Thursday 21 May 2026.
Proudly supported by headline partners Pro Global and Made in Gloucestershire, the event brought together finalists, category partners and special guests to reveal the winners across all 18 categories for the first time – including the coveted Lifestyle & Community Winner of the Year, handpicked by our headline partners from all of this year's category winners.
Building on the great success of the Gloucestershire Lifestyle Awards, this year included fresh new categories celebrating the incredible contributions individuals and groups are making to our local community and saw unprecedented entries pour in from all over the county.
With fierce competition during the public vote, only the top contenders for each category made it through as finalists, with the winners and highly commended businesses chosen by a panel of judges comprised of representatives from Gloucestershire Lifestyle & Community Awards category partners.
As well as being the first to find out who was taking home a trophy, guests at the awards ceremony were treated to welcome drinks and a street food supper, provided by our event partner The Cheltenham Trust.
Special thanks go to our compere, Steve Knibbs, and the whole SoGlos team for making the evening amazing!
The winners are...
Gloucestershire Lifestyle & Community Awards 2026 winners
Cultural Venue of the Year 2026
Category partner: Aqua Construction
Winner: Gloucester Cathedral
Not only Gloucestershire's most iconic building, Gloucester Cathedral is a thriving cultural hub, offering a warm welcome to people of all faiths and of none, and playing host to everything from large-scale concerts and festivals to art installations and family trails throughout the year.
Highly commended: Westonbirt, The National Arboretum, Forestry England
Family Day Out of the Year 2026
Category partner: WSP Solicitors
Winner: Countryside Adventure at Over Farm
Providing plenty of fun in the great outdoors, Over Farm's Countryside Adventure is a huge hit with Gloucestershire families, with giant bouncing pillows, tractor trailer rides, mini golf, animal encounters and much more, all surrounded by the gorgeous Gloucestershire countryside on this family run farm.
Highly commended: Slimbridge Wetland Centre
Independent School of the Year 2026
Category partner: Griffiths Marshall
Winner: Dean Close School
Dean Close School provides an outstanding, all-through education for children aged two to 18, with day and boarding options available. Set within 50 acres of grounds on the outskirts of Cheltenham, its reputation for nurturing pastoral care and its warm, friendly atmosphere is underpinned by a strong Christian ethos, making the experience at Dean Close 'distinctly different'.
Highly commended: The King's School Gloucester
Entertainment Venue of the Year 2026
Category partner: The Cheltenham Trust
Winner: The Roses Theatre
Theatre, cinema and community hub, Tewkesbury's The Roses Theatre is beloved by locals. Alongside hosting big names like Bill Bailey and producing its own popular panto every Christmas, The Roses provides opportunities for everyone to get involved in the arts through its multitude of year-round initiatives, including Roses Young Creatives, regular open mic nights, craft workshops, community choir and dementia-friendly activities.
Highly commended: Everyman Theatre
Sporting Venue of the Year 2026
Category partner: Bennetts Coaches
Winner: Forest of Dean Cycle Centre
Described as 'the home of mountain biking in the Forest of Dean', the Forest of Dean Cycle Centre has trails for riders of all abilities, as well as a pump track, cafe and bike hire on-site. Whether you're a thrill-seeker taking on the challenge of an exhilirating downhill trail, or heading out on a leisurely family ride, the centre's fantastic facilities mean everyone can enjoy exploring on two wheels.
Highly commended: Kingsholm Stadium
Restaurant of the Year 2026
Category partner: rockwealth
Winner: KIBOU Japanese Kitchen & Bar
One of Cheltenham's prettiest restaurants, KIBOU Japanese Kitchen & Bar takes the restaurant crown once more in 2026, having won Gloucestershire Lifestyle Awards Restaurant of the Year in 2021 and come Highly Commended in 2022, 2023 and 2024. It serves up sophisticated sushi, delicious hot dishes like katsu curries and fragrant ramen, Asian-inspired cocktails and even Japanese afternoon tea. Kanpai!
Highly commended: Trattoria Settebello
Food & Drink Producer of the Year 2026
Category partner: Stagecoach
Winner: Gloucester Brewery
Located at the heart of Gloucester's historic docks, 'earth-conscious' Gloucester Brewery creates multi-award-winning small-batch beers and spirits with sustainability at heart. Its core collection can be found in pubs all over the country and it regularly creates special brews for a variety of good causes, from its limited edition Cathedr-Ale to assist the conservation works on Gloucester Cathedral's famous Cloister, to its alcohol-free Cheeky Chopper, which raises money for Great Western Air Ambulance Charity.
Highly commended: The Artisan Baker and Woodchester Valley Vineyard
Pub / Bar of the Year 2026
Category partner: NFU Mutual
Winner: Clavell & Hind
Clavell & Hind's taproom on the outskirts of Cheltenham is a hotspot for drinks, dining and entertainment. As well as tucking into 'outlaws' burgers, loaded fries, grazing bowls and Sunday roasts, washed down with a pint of its award-winning beer, guests can test their wits at its regular quiz nights, enjoy live music and celebrity DJ sets, get crafty with paint and sip sessions, throw some shapes at a silent disco or get their hoedown on at its Country & Blues Festival.
Highly commended: Dr Foster
Cafe / Coffee Shop of the Year 2026
Category partner: The Orders of St John Care Trust
Winner: Roots + Seeds Cafe and Kitchen, Gloucester Food Dock
Roots + Seeds Cafe and Kitchen brings fresh, field-to-fork dining to the vibrant Gloucester Food Dock. Famous for its seasonally-changing menu, packed with homegrown and foraged produce, as well as its handcrafted cocktails, the family-friendly cafe offers nutritious brunches and lunches with picturesque views of the Victoria Basin and its colourful boats, thanks to its floor-to-ceiling windows and sunny outdoor dining area.
Highly commended: The Chamwell Centre Charity Cafe
Property & Interiors Business of the Year 2026
Category partner: Lansdown Kitchens & Bathrooms
Winner: Trioscape Garden Centre
From outdoor plants, bulbs, garden furniture and landscaping supplies, to houseplants, homeware, food and drink and even clothing, Trioscape Garden Centre in Newent is a haven for Gloucestershire's green-fingered residents, bursting with inspiration for the home and garden and proudly supporting local suppliers.
Highly commended: Orangerie
Health & Wellbeing Business of the Year 2026
Category partner: Nuffield Health Cheltenham Hospital
Winner: Jim’s Gym
Established by personal trainer James Hilton, Jim's Gym is a virtual gym for people over 55, providing live online classes and on-demand workouts designed to be done at home. Jim's Gym offers standing and seated options suitable for people of all abilities, as well as progress tracking tools and a supportive community that helps its members develop and maintain healthy habits, while having fun at the same time.
Highly commended: Sweet Silent Disco
Event of the Year 2026
Category partner: 16i
Winner: Lions at Large - The Pride of Gloucestershire Trail, Cheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Charity
This roar-some public art trail saw a pride of 32 colourful lions designed by local artists take over Cheltenham and Gloucester. As well as attracting thousands of visitors to the town centres, once the trail ended, the lions were auctioned off, raising over £200,000 for Cheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Charity, to go towards a new, state-of-the-art cancer care facility for the county.
Highly commended: The Royal International Air Tattoo and The 745 Game, The Gloucester Rugby Charitable Foundation
Sports Team/Club of the Year 2026
Category partner: Active Gloucestershire
Winner: Gloucester Hartpury Rugby
Winning three consecutive Premiership titles in 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25, the 'Queens of Queensholm' Gloucester-Hartpury are a formidable force not just in women's rugby, but women's sport overall. Dominating in both the UK and Europe, their success is built on a foundation of consistency, commitment and community, earning them a well-deserved place in the history books – and fans' hearts.
Highly commended: Longlevens Rugby Club
Volunteer Award 2026
Category partner: The Cheltenham Chase Hotel
Winner: Sue Weir-Cracknell, Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice
A valued volunteer at Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice for 10 years, Sue Weir-Cracknell helps with everything from hosting coffee mornings and supporting patients in the community hub, to working at fundraising events throughout the year – and she's worked on reception on Christmas Day for eight years in a row. Described as 'reliable, generous and kind-hearted', Sue was inspired by the generous care shown to her and her family when one of her relatives became a patient and has been giving back ever since.
Highly commended: Lynn Smith, James Hopkins Trust
Community Award 2026
Category partner: First Thought Care Services
Winner: Community Rugby Programme, Gloucester Rugby
Using the power of sport to inspire positive change, Gloucester Rugby's Community Rugby Programme works with schools, community groups and grassroots clubs across the county to promote healthy lifestyles and help young people build confidence and life skills. From camps and training programmes to matchday experiences, an external report showed it had over 3,944 unique participants over the last 12 months, delivering a staggering £5,972,600 in social value.
Highly commended: YMCA Cheltenham
Fundraiser Award 2026
Category partner: Precision Builders Ltd
Winner: The Tufthorn Inn, Coleford, Great Western Air Ambulance Charity
Spearheaded by landlord Jack Crook, Coleford's The Tufthorn Inn has raised almost £27,500 for the Great Western Air Ambulance Charity, funding 12 potentially lifesaving missions in the local area. The pub's Christmas raffle creates a prize mountain that fills half the bar with gifts donated by the local community – and its generous locals are more than happy to part with their pennies for such a worthy cause.
Highly commended: Lydia Atkinson & Rosie King, The Gloucester Rugby Charitable Foundation
Charity of the Year 2026
Category partner: Cotswolds Designer Outlet
Winner: Gloucestershire Animal Welfare Association & Cheltenham Animal Shelter
Cheltenham Animal Shelter has been rescuing and rehoming animals for 100 years, but the charity does so much more than that – such as teaching young people about animal husbandry; providing animal assisted therapy at residential homes and day centres; running dog training classes with behavioural experts; and even offering an affordable, on-site vet service for local pet owners.
Highly commended: GRASAC-Gloucestershire Rape & Sexual Abuse Centre
Lifestyle & Community Winner of the Year 2026
Category partner: Pro Global and Made in Gloucestershire
Winner: Gloucester Hartpury Rugby
Handpicked by headline co-partners Pro Global and Made in Gloucestershire from all the winners on the night, Gloucester Hartpury Rugby are the Gloucestershire Lifestyle & Community Awards Winner of the Year 2026!
Mick Axtell, director of Gloucester Hartpury and chief operating officer of Hartpury University and Hartpury College, said of winning the night’s biggest award: ‘I’m shocked, to be honest!
'The team has been amazing – three back-to-back championships, and we’re in the semi-finals again on Sunday 14 June, so get to Queensholm!
'Support for the team from the community, and from sponsors, is just great – it’s fantastic to be celebrating all of that this evening’.
