A CHOIR has been put forward for royal recognition for its community work.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service is Britain’s highest award for voluntary groups. The Rame Peninsula Male Voice Choir has joined Falmouth Age Concern Befriending and  Falmouth Cruise Ship Ambassadors as Cornwall’s candidates for this year’s awards, to be announced on the Queen’s official birthday, June 2.

All three organisations were guests of Cornwall Council chair Mary May at  a reception in County Hall, Truro, where their nominations were marked by presentations of  framed parchments by Cornwall’s Lord Lieutenant, Colonel Edward Bolitho.

The choir has raised more than £16,000 for diagnostic equipment at Derriford Hospital’s oncology unit.

The choir’s fundraising initiative was designed to cut NHS waiting times and halve the 400-mile round trip which Cornwall’s more far-flung residents have been obliged to make to access appropriate cancer diagnosis in Bristol.

Many of the Cornish male voice choir community have added their support, and are about to do so again.

On May 12 in St Michael’s Church, Newquay, (7.30pm), the host choir will be joined by Burraton and Rame Peninsula choirs for a concert from which the proceeds will go to the oncology unit.

There will be coffee mornings in the Kingsand Institute on May 12 and 26.