ROSE Kent, managing and creative director of Accessible Arts and Media, was crowned Cultural Champion at the climax to the first York Culture Awards last night.

Eleven awards in all were announced at the Central Methodist Church, York, selected by a panel of independent judges from more than 100 entries, whittled down to 32 finalists.

Run by Make It York, this new annual award celebrates York’s cultural vibrancy and seeks to raise the bar for for the city’s arts and culture scene.

The Cultural Partnership award went to Vespertine, who specialise in events at dusk; the Community Project or Event winner was Text, the Technology, Disability and Art Project run by Greg and Ails McGee’s charity New Visuality, with York Museums Trust being highly commended. Fulford School took home the Cultural Education prize.

The Cultural Equality and Diversity winner was Accessible Arts and Media’s IMPs Project, with festivals organiser Sue Lister being highly commended. The Cultural Event or Festival of the year was York Theatre Royal’s TakeOver Festival, in residence at the National Railway Museum. Catherine Mason’s We Are Only Human won the film prize; Alice Stabler’s Mad Alice history tour took the Performing Artist award; Phillip Breen’s York Minster Mystery Plays received the Production prize. The winning Visual Artist was Emily Harvey for York Panorama and the Writer prize went to Carole Bromley for The Stonegate Devil.

Ben Porter’s film showcasing the city’s culture was shown, narrated by poet Dave Jarman; musical performances were given by 15 young people with disabilities from the Accessible Arts and Media IMPs project, the York Theatre Royal choir and Adam Parrish, playing a specially commissioned piece by York composer Peter Byrom-Smith.