A woman who has supported hundreds of people to enjoy their passion for netball has won the Sefton Sportsperson Of The Year Award sponsored by Solarcrown at the 2026 Grand Pride Of Sefton Awards.
Jenny Taylor was presented with her title by Solarcrown Managing Director Kenny Currie at The Grand in Southport on a glittering night which saw people honoured across 13 categories.
If there is one person who has truly made Sefton a better place, it is Jenny.
In 2014, Jenny founded her netball club alongside her friend Michelle with just four or five young girls attending each week.
What began as a small grassroots initiative has grown into a thriving community club with over 180 members, ranging from children aged four to women in their 50s. The club now proudly runs 16 teams competing across the Merseyside Junior League, Liverpool Netball League, North West Regional League and the Warrington Premiership League.
However, this nomination goes far beyond league tables and competitive success.
Jenny has built a club that lives by its motto:
“The Court is our Home, the Players are our Friends, and the Club is our Family.”
Through her leadership, she has created a safe, inclusive and empowering environment where players develop not only as athletes, but as confident, resilient individuals. The club has become a place of belonging for hundreds of families across Sefton.
Her impact stretches far beyond the court. Under Jenny’s guidance, the club actively supports the wider community through
• Christmas toy appeals
• Christmas food bank collections
• Fundraising for Children in Need
• Breast Cancer Awareness Month initiatives
• Mental health workshops delivered in partnership with Everton in the community
Jenny also introduced NetballHER to the club, an initiative promoting education around menstrual cycles, injury prevention, pelvic health, nutrition and mental wellbeing — ensuring female athletes are supported with knowledge that is often overlooked in grassroots sport.
The club’s annual Mark the Memories tournament has become one of the region’s standout sporting events while raising significant funds for Mark the Memories. The tournament started in 2018 and has run every year since (except Covid).
With the latest tournament raising £6520.81
Mark the memories was set up in memory of one the Empire families dad/husband.
The aim of the charity is to assist young people in the achievement and development of amateur sporting excellence and health, by using the funds collected to be distributed for clothing, equipment, sports education, coaching mentoring or club membership fees as appropriate.
It is their hope and aspiration that they will help as many young people as is possible within their income, and no sport will be excluded from consideration.
The Summer 2025 tournament alone welcomed over 750 netballers, 95 teams, 13 courts and participants from four counties across two fully packed weekends — even including a parent “friendly” match.
Looking ahead to 2026, the ambition continues to grow. The 96 junior places for the 2026 tournament sold out within 24 hours of launch. Within 48 hours, a further 75 teams were attempting to secure a place. Plans are now underway to host the event across two venues on the same day, creating space for 144 junior teams — bringing together over 1,100 netballers from across the North West and North Wales. Senior entries remain open, reflecting the continued growth and demand Jenny has helped create.
enny’s leadership extends deeply into coaching and development. All coaches are UKCC qualified, and the club operates a strong mentoring programme for those completing coaching qualifications. Assistant coaches are supported by Level 2 mentors, and every coach holds full DBS clearance, Emergency First Aid at Work and Child Safeguarding certification.
The club now supports:
• 13 Level 2 coaches
• 5 Level 1 coaches
• 1 B Award umpire
• 6 C Award umpires
• 10 developing officials
Beyond the club itself, Jenny serves as North West Regional Chair, contributing to the development and growth of netball across the wider region. Her role is to be the voice of the region to protect, maintain and grow grassroots sports. Working closely with England Netball, her feedback and ideas are used to shape future initiatives, courses and changes to how paying members benefit from their National Governing Body (NGB). Overseeing 5 individual county chairs, I ensure that athletes have fair access to trials and oversee a bursary fund established by the region to support athletes who excel in sport but may need financial support.
What makes her contribution even more extraordinary is that she does all of this while working full time, being on call 24/7, and raising two young children aged just two and three. She frequently uses her annual leave not for rest, but to set up and take down 270 tables and chairs for the club’s end-of-season celebrations — most recently bringing together 270 members to celebrate the 2024/25 season and everything achieved in the past year.
Jenny leads with both heart and business head. She has grown a sustainable, professionally run organisation while keeping community, inclusion and care firmly at its core.
She has not simply built a netball club.
She has built belonging.
She has built opportunity.
She has built family.
Jenny’s dedication, compassion and tireless volunteer spirit have had an extraordinary positive impact on Sefton. She is truly deserving of this award.
The 2026 Grand Pride Of Sefton Awards celebrated selfless, talented and courageous people across 13 categories at The Grand in Southport on 24th April 2026.
The Main Award was won by Queenscourt Hospice founder Dr Karen Groves MBE.
The evening was hosted by former Sky Sports News presenter Fraser Dainton with VIP guests including HM Lord-Lieutenant of Merseyside Peter Oliver OBE and Mayor of Sefton Cllr Burns.
Funds were raised on the night for the ICU Steps charity, which supports patients in intensive care and their families.
The Grand Pride Of Sefton Awards are organised by Mikhail Hotel and Leisure Group and Stand Up For Southport in association with media partners In Demand Radio with support from Southport BID.
There are 13 categories including Child of Courage, School Of The Year, Community Impact, Charity Champion and more, plus the Main Award.
Next year’s event takes place on Friday 30th April 2027.
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