Aylesbury transgender activist Marteene Pringle nominated for National Diversity Awards

She has been nominated for the category of 'Positive Role Model' for her work in promoting the rights of transgender people across Buckinghamshire and beyond.

Marteene Pringle who transitioned to a female in 2013 now works for Trans Radio UK which supports Trans rights and the positive representation of Trans people in the UK and worldwide.

She is a brand ambassdor for Trans Radio UK.

You can read her incredible story here.Last year we reported that Marteene Pringle, who lives in Aylesbury, attended Oxford Magistrates Court to see a man who transphobic abusive comments and also spat at her at work, found guilty of the crime.

Marteene received an award for all the work she does promoting the reporting of hate crime against transgender people.

She was given the 'Community Upstander Award' at the national No2H8Crime ceremony in at the Intercontinental Hotel in Mayfair, by Dr Erin Saltman from Facebook who sponsored the award.

And now she's been nominated for another.

The National Diversity Awards celebrates the excellent achievements of grass- root communities tackling the issues in today’s society, giving them recognition for their dedication and hard work.

Charities, role models and community heroes will be honoured at the ceremony showcasing their outstanding devotion to enhancing equality, diversity and inclusion; thus embracing the excellence of all our citizens irrespective of race, faith, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability and culture.

Marteene said she was 'gobsmacked' when she heard the news about the nomination.

Marteene said: "They told me via e-mail - somebody nominated me - I think it was Bucks NHS Trust - I did a staff conference for them at their board of directors meeting and issues facing the trans community.

"I was completely surprised but happy. I just want to raise awareness around issues trans people face in their day to day lives.

"There's still a long process to get through to the award - you have to be nominated to make the shortlist

"People have to do a write a little story about me and that's how you get on the shortlist."

Nominations will close on May 18 – To nominate, please visit www.nationaldiversityawards.co.uk/nominateThe panel of judges will then look through the nominations, and announce the shortlists by June 16.

Marteene has recently been working with Facebook to help them stop people posting hateful comments aimed at transgender people online.

She said: "At the end of the day, we're all just people - the more we understand each other and what people are going through the better we can understand each other and live in harmony.

"Me and a mixed group from the LGBTQUI community have been to the Facebook headquarters to discuss how we can stop people posting abusive messages and things like that online, aimed at transgender people.

"We're now just putting together what we will take back to Facebook to help them implement the changes.

Marteene has done lots of work locally talking about Transgender people, and helping anyone who needs advice. She also helped out at Aylesbury 's PRIDE event with an impute on Trans issues, which was a resounding success.

"If anybody locally is struggling with transgender issues locally, they can join the Aylesbury Vale Transgender and Friends community (by clicking here) group on facebook.

"It's a forum where people can ask questions and learn about transgender people and the issues they face in society."

The concept for the National Diversity Awards arose when The Diversity Group identified an urgent need for more positive role models to be actively promoted, with the aim to empower and inspire the wide breadth of diverse communities across the UK.

If ever there was a time to celebrate and elevate the truly staggering diversity of talent the UK has to offer, it is now – opportunities are thin, and deprived communities need motivation and inspiration.

These awards are for people who inspire other individuals through their work, through their commitment to helping others, through their infectious personalities and through adversity.