The Awards, now in their fourth year, recognise the positive impact that professional rugby clubs have on their local environment, community and society.

The winner of the 'Community Club of the Year' will be announced at the House of Commons on Wednesday, April 29th. The award will be decided after a gruelling interrogation from a judging panel which will include Derek Wyatt MP, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Rugby Union Group, Mark McCafferty, chief executive of Premier Rugby, and Miriam Sherlock, editor of Sports Business magazine.

Saints' work was praised by judges, who included representatives from the Third Sector, for the scale, quality and focus of the work the club does in the local communities with private and public sector partners.

The Saints Community Department currently runs 20 individual programmes in addition to many supporting projects and one-off charity work. During the past 12 months more than 500 schools and 200 rugby clubs have been visited with over 20,000 young people receiving rugby coaching. Furthermore nearly 400 individual visits were made by Saints players to various organisations.

Programmes run by the Saints Community Department have included:
• 'Changing Minds', an initiative designed to address issues such as low self-esteem, anger management and confidence
• 'Saints Schools Packages' which provide opportunities for schools to aid students' learning, with particular emphasis on a healthy and balanced lifestyle
• 'Young Carers' which, with help from the Rotary Club, gives support to young people who are carers
• 'Saints Matchdays', which offers children and their families the opportunity to experience the Saints when they would not otherwise have been able to. This initiative is supported by Barclaycard
• 'Supporter2Reporter', which helped children in care further themselves in sports journalism
• 'Kick Smoking Into Touch', which this year has been led by Saints Senior Academy player Rob Milligan as part of his personal development
• Rugby coaching courses run during school holidays
• Elite development of players and coaches

"Over the past few years our community team has worked hard and been proactive in developing our programmes," said Saints head of community Sian Haynes. "But our achievements would not be possible without the support of companies such as our main sponsors Travis Perkins and local governmental organisations such as the Northampton School Sports Partnership, not to mention all the schools, rugby clubs and organisations we have worked with over the past 12 months. I would like to thank everyone involved and hope that all this hard work will be justly rewarded by becoming 'Community Club of the Year' next week."

"I am proud and delighted that our community work has been recognised within Parliament," said Saints chief executive Allan Robson. "Sian and her team put in a considerable amount of time behind the scenes to take the Saints out into the community, delivering a wide range of programmes and initiatives in schools, charities and local businesses. The club has long been at the heart of the Northampton community and whenever the community team and Saints players make visits they are always welcomed with plenty of enthusiasm and excitement. Our commitment to the community is ongoing and this will continue well into the future."

One programme that was highly commended in the SportBusiness CSR category was the Travis Perkins/Saints in the Schools project. The project, which was launched in March 2008, took rugby into primary, secondary and special schools across Northampton. Run in association with the Northampton School Sports Partnership, the project was made possible by a £33,000 sponsorship from Travis Perkins that was matched pound-for-pound by SportsMatch.

"Travis Perkins is proud to have been involved in the community project with Saints this season, and are thrilled at its immediate success," said Linda Doughty, Travis Perkins' Trade Marketing Director. "We are delighted that so many young people have enjoyed taking part, and you never know, there may be a budding Saints and international player in there somewhere who has now caught the rugby 'bug'!

"As major businesses in the town with a long-standing relationship, we feel that it is our duty to invest in our community, so are excited at the prospect of a second year with the project and hope that this arrangement can continue for many years to come."

"Professional rugby union clubs are tackling the health, education and social agendas of their communities with skill and determination," said Derek Wyatt, MP for Sittingbourne and Sheppey and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Rugby Union Group.

"The good thing is that these schemes are not just about getting kids playing rugby. Clubs are involved in dealing with crime, social exclusion and health alongside local partners and Third Sector organisations. We want charities, NGOs and others to look at rugby, not just as a tool for encouraging physical activity but as tool for solving other types of social problems."