How do you know they discourage people Dick? Do the Young Folk awards also discourage people - or indeed the BBC Young (Classical) Musician Awards?

I know we are not likely to agree on this - and I do have some reservations about awards but on balance feel they are an ok thing given the attention they get from the wider media (and thus potentially from new audiences who may go on to discover more about grassroots folk)

I am involved in the Yorkshire Gig Guide Grassroots Awards (multi genre) - like the BBC Folk Awards our Awards are not perfect but they provide a great opportunity for many in the live music scene to come together to celebrate the diversity and wealth of music in Yorkshire