Representatives from the crème de la crème of Scotland’s charity sector are set to enjoy a glittering awards ceremony.

The finalists for this year’s Scottish Charity Awards have been revealed – with 44 organisations and individuals recognised.

The winners will be announced at a glittering awards ceremony on Friday 14 June at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre.

Six organisations have been selected for the Charity of the Year category: Drake Music Scotland, Maggie's, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance, the Scottish Cot Death Trust and Young Enterprise Scotland.

The British Heart Foundation’s Nation of Lifesavers and MND Scotland and Marie Curie Social Security in Scotland campaigns are amongst those recognised in the Cracking Campaigns category, and six organisations have been selected for Pioneering Project, including Deafblind Scotland and Unforgotten Forces.

Robin Barr (Music in Hospitals and Care Scotland), Eleanor Moffat (Breast Cancer Now & Breast Cancer Care), Laura Reid (Support in Mind Scotland) and Shona MacKenzie (Macmillan Cancer Support) will vie for the Charity Champion award.

Other awards which will be handed out on the night are Leading Light, Celebrating Communities, Terrific Trustee and Demonstrating Digital. Members of the public will also select the winner of the People’s Choice Award, with voting open until Friday 17 May.

Anna Fowlie, chief executive of SCVO, praised the standard of applications to the awards.

She said: “I am looking forward to this year’s Scottish Charity Awards – we have a staggering 44 finalists, which highlights the diverse variety of fantastic work that’s being going on in Scotland’s voluntary sector over the past 12 months.

“The awards are a great way of celebrating and recognising those working to better our communities, and as in previous years, the calibre of this year’s finalists highlights their creative and innovate approaches to finding solutions to support their communities during challenging times. All of our finalists are so deserving and I would encourage people to support their favourite by voting in the People’s Choice Award.”

Last year, Blood Bikes Scotland scooped both Charity of the Year and the People’s Choice Award.