Congratulations to Alice Pulford - Britain's Best Volunteer 2015

Alice was the winner in a close result which saw the public cast a total of 3,000 votes for the five finalists. With Alice currently volunteering in Malawi, Andy Partington and John Barrett presented LoveSupportUnite volunteers Sophie Riley, Ibzie Duckett, Scarlett Duckett and Alex Duckett with a cheque for £1,250 for the charity at Alice’s former school, Ratcliffe College in Leicestershire. Alice will also receive £1,000 in holiday vouchers for her own personal use.

Alice, from Rothley in Leicestershire, began volunteering in 2008, aged 17, during a year out in Malawi. After teaching at a primary school for five months, she began work on building a shelter which soon grew into the Tilinanu orphanage, housing 20 girls. In 2014, Alice and her sister Nina founded the LoveSupportUnite Foundation and the charity now sends £1,500 each month to the orphanage. Read more about Alice's remarkable achievements.

On hearing she had won the award, Alice said:

“My sister Nina, and I, believe that to make positive and lasting change you need to take the time to work and listen to communities and build development together. The work that we are doing is not easy – and there is no quick fix. We are continuously working to generate change, and to build our support network.

”We are so shocked but grateful for the acknowledgement and love that has been shown for our efforts with this award. The endless love and support from our family, friends, community, local schools and, of course, our wonderful volunteers has enabled us to contribute positive change within the lives of so many hundreds of children, adults and communities in Malawi. Our dedication to this cause is lifelong. We want to share the opportunities that we have been lucky enough to receive in our life to help others less fortunate. Our motto is: we are love, we are grass roots, we believe in positive sustainable change.”

The four runner up finalists – Caitlin Dean, Donna Saunders, Jim Green and John Broom – each receive a £250 donation to a charity of their choice and an iPad mini.

A huge thank you from Markel and Small Charities Coalition for all who nominated or voted.