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Fathoms Free are winners of the Kings Award for Voluntary Service

We're incredibly proud to be able to announce that Fathoms Free have been awarded the King's Award for Voluntary Service! Equivalent to an MBE, this is the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK! The award celebrates exceptional contributions volunteers make to their local communities, and we're deeply humbled to have been honoured with it.

This year has been particularly significant for Fathoms Free, marked by the launch of our dive boat Stingray. Refurbished in-house by our volunteer team, Stingray has enabled us to expand our marine conservation operations and increase collaboration with other local charities that share our mission. In addition to ghost gear recovery work, since its launch earlier this year, Stingray has supported Cornwall Wildlife Trust Seasearch programme, carrying divers and snorkellers for marine surveys across Cornwall, assisted the Ocean Conservation Trust with seagrass restoration work, and supported fundraising for DDRC Healthcare which looks after our divers.

This award is a huge honour for everyone involved with Fathoms Free. Our volunteers give their time, skills, and energy to protect the marine environment, and this recognition shines a light on their dedication. Stingray in particular has transformed what we can achieve, and this award belongs to everyone who has helped make that possible.

The King's Award for Voluntary Service aims to recognise outstanding work by local volunteer groups to support their communities. It was created in 2002 to celebrate Her Late Majesty The Queen's Golden Jubilee and was continued following the accession of His Majesty The King. 2025 marks the third year of The King's Award for Voluntary Service.

Fathoms Free will be formally presented with the award by the Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall, Sir Edward Bolitho KCVO OBE, at a ceremony later this year, and will attend a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace in the summer of 2026, along with other recipients of this year's award.

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Fathoms Free is a group of volunteer divers who protect marine wildlife and the environment for everyone's benefit by removing ALDFG (abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear) and other marine debris from the coastal waters of Cornwall and Devon.

ALDFG is also known as ghost gear or ghost fishing gear, as it continues to "fish," entangling, trapping, and killing wildlife indiscriminately. These trapped animals will die and act as bait, attracting more wildlife in a vicious cycle of death until the ghost gear is removed from the environment.

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Email us: contact@fathomsfree.org

Fathoms free are a registered charity.

UK charity number 1192613

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