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Yours magazine and RIAS launche the first ever Grandparent Of The Year awards.

Yours magazine has partnered with RIAS, the over 50s insurance provider, to launch its first ever Grandparent of the Year Awards!

The awards celebrate the value of grandmothers and grandfathers to UK families and to recognise the important role they play, offering wisdom, experience, support and love.

The public have until Friday, September 2 to enter their parents, friends or grandparents into any of the following categories:

Active Gran or grandad
Fun Gran or grandad
Hero Gran or grandad
Glam Gran or grandad

Each winner in these five categories will then go forward to be in with a chance of being crowned the overall Grandparent of the Year 2011.

The judging panel includes celebrity grandparent Janet Ellis, well-known broadcaster and grandmother to singer Sophie Ellis Bextor’s children; Chief Executive of charity Grandparents Plus Denise Murphy; Chief Executive of Grandparents Association Lynn Chesterman; RIAS Managing Director Janet Connor and the Editor of Yours magazine Valery McConnell.

The panel will review all the nominations and decide on the category winners (with the exception of the winner ‘Active Gran’ category, who will be exclusively chosen by RIAS customers), who will then attend a makeover and photo shoot at the luxurious Park Lane Hilton Hotel on October 7, 2011.

All the finalists o will enjoy a delicious afternoon tea, makeover and photoshoot, after which the overall Grandparent of the Year 2011 will be announced. The lucky winner will receive a £1,500 Thomas Cook holiday to reward them for their achievement and the runners up will each receive £100 worth of M&S vouchers, all courtesy of the specialist insurance provider RIAS.

For more information about the Grandparent of the Year Awards 2011, and to enter, visit www.yours.co.uk/grandparentoftheyear2011