A 'FABULOUS' woman from York has been nominated for a Community Pride award for her work setting up a charity in the city.

Ruth Thompson, managing director at York Inspirational Kids, has been nominated for the Person of the Year prize in this year's awards.

Since it was formed by Ruth in 2011, the charity's team have continued to work with autistic, disabled and special needs children, taking them on trips to different places and organising clubs for them to join in with.

Julie Thompson, who nominated Ruth for the award, said: "Ruth puts so much of her free time into looking into parent carer questions, organising support clubs and meet ups for the young people with disabilities and other things for parents and carers. Along with useful information and the minefield of the learning journey when you have a child with a diagnosis.

"The two Facebook groups are a life-line and Ruth is also fundraising for other ventures including STIMUL8 inclusive and has a cafe run by people with disabilities at 4 Evans Business Park Rose Avenue, York.

"Ruth does all of this fabulous work on top of having her own children with additional needs. This lady never stops - she is an inspiration to us all."

At the beginning, 23 families took part in the York Inspirational Kids group, but today, the charity works with over 2,100 families in York and surrounding areas.

Its services include after-school, weekend and holiday clubs for children with physical/learning disabilities and autistic children, life and work skills for young people with autism and disabilities, coffee mornings and drop-in advice sessions, as well as social events for youngsters and their parents.

Working closely with the local authority and NHS (ICS), the charity stages workshops, therapy and training sessions for families affected by autism. It runs the York Parent Carer Forum, which provides feedback on services, helping ensure they’re fit for purpose, to the local authority, Department for Education and health authority. York Inspirational Kids is also actively involved in policy development and service delivery with its local authority, health and education partners.

For further details on York Inspirational Kids, or for updates on the charity's work in and around York, visit the Facebook page.

The categories in this year’s Community Pride awards include Volunteer of the Year, Charity Fundraiser, Child of the Year, Sporting Hero, Best Community Project, Health Service Hero, Mental Health Award, Spirit of Youth, YCP Person of the Year, Carer of the Year and Public Sector Hero.

Nominations are now closed for this year's Community Pride awards - and will open again in early next year.

All nominees must live in or contribute to the community within the City of York Council area.