A GROUP of young people from Poole have won an award after holding their own photography exhibition.

Named Side by Side, the gallery event, held at The Quay Foyer on Hill Street, in February, aimed to highlight the contrast between what some deem as the ‘Rich South’ and the reality.

Five of the young people who took part in the exhibition, organised as part of Lloyds Bank’s Money for Life challenge, were invited to head to the finals of the competition.

While there, they were awarded a special, and previously unplanned, judges prize in recognition of their work and the impact that it had on the community, which includes £300 to put towards their project.

Karen Cowser, deputy manager of Raglan Housing’s The Quay Foyer, said: “I’m so proud of Side by Side and believe that they thoroughly deserve the special judges’ prizes as I’ve been bowled over by their dedication to the project since the start.”

The exhibition featured 16 photos of eight contrasting situations, with the one image in colour and the opposite in monochrome, such as an expensive, premium car garage next to a second-hand car sales forecourt.

David Rowsell, head of the Money for Life programme at Lloyds Banking Group, said: “I was thrilled that the judges decided to award an extra, unplanned prize at the Money for Life final, which will allow their project to have a greater impact.”

“Congratulations to all who took part.”

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