A FORMER Bury woman of the year has been recognised in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List.

Yvonne Moore, of Heycroft, Whitefield, was awarded the British Empire Medal for her services to the local community of Bury.

After suffering from breast cancer 12 years ago, she has worked tirelessly in a variety of community projects, and was made Bury Woman of the year in 2009.

Mrs Moore, aged 72, founded Old Hall Park Residents Association 10 years ago, and is also a Home Watch co-ordinator, has been a member of Whitefield local area partnership, a judge for the Elms in Bloom gardening competition, and honorary secretary of Bury Metro Community Twinning Association.

She said: “It was a big surprise for me and I am absolutely delighted, not that I do the work for recognition. I do the work because I enjoy doing it and I am a great believer in what I do.

“I was talking to someone recently who asked me ‘Is there anything you don’t do?’”

Mrs Moore, lives with her husband David and has a daughter and two granddaughters, and has been heavily involved in the Whitefield and Unsworth township area.

She is a former teacher and moved to Whitefield from Wales in 1965, and became involved in the community after surviving breast cancer.

Mrs Moore said: “Things just snowballed, if you do one thing you get involved in lots of others.

“I set up the residents association 10 years ago and it has grown since, and I feel that is a real achieve-ment. Working in the community is the way forward.

“We were a typical dormitory neighbourhood, where people simply did not know their neighbours. Crime, and particularly the number of burglaries, was worrying.

“It has helped to improve things on the estate and has created a lot of friendships and support groups. People know each other now, we have become a community and the quality of life is thought by many to have improved.”

A keen gardener, Mrs Moore has also opened her garden to the community over a number of years for a garden party, and helped to raise more than £16,000 for local charities.

In addition she was recently honoured at the first ever Made in Bury community awards, where Mrs Moore and her husband won the ‘outstanding contribution to a township’ award.

She added: “Being given this award is lovely and as far as I am concerned, it serves as recognition of the importance of local communities to the town and to each other and it endorses the positive value of volunteering.”

Prestwich’s Michael Victor Hymanson was also awarded an MBE in recognition of charitable services to children and young adults with terminal or life threatening conditions in the North West.

A former divisional commander of Bury Police is also among the honours.

Garry Shewan, assistant Chief Constable, Greater Manchester Police, has been awarded the Queen’s Police Medal. As a chief superintendent, he was in charge of the Bury police division between January, 2004 and June, 2005.