The Rt Revd Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, Bishop of Ripon, has been doing her part to recognise good religious broadcasting, as she hosted the recently held Sanford St Martin 2021 Awards.
The awards, held by the Sandford St Martin Trust, looked to honour the best religious programs of the last year, and included two new accolades to recognize the work done in this field during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bishop Helen-Ann welcomed guests to the virtual event from in front of the Emley Moor Transmitter in West Yorkshire.
She said: “No matter the challenges facing us, no matter the distance separating us, and no matter the Zoom screens infuriating us, we have all been connected by stories.
“Stories of love and of pain, of grief and of joy, of hope and of faith.
“While COVID may have closed our doors, intelligent, heartfelt and meaningful storytelling has opened our windows to the world.”
You can catch up with the awards here, and find a full list of all the winners and runners up here.
The Sandford St Martin Trust, of which Bishop Helen-Ann is the chair, looks to promote distinctive and engaging programming that deals with religion, ethics and spirituality.
Through its annual awards, the Trust promotes excellent broadcasting about all faiths, from major networks, independents and online sources, at local and national level.
The Trust was established by post-war benefactor and Anglican layman, Sir David Wills in 1978, and takes its name from the Oxfordshire village where Sir David used to live.