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Gordon Brown was the guest of honour this morning, as the UK Catalyst Awards for community projects best utilising social technology were held in London’s Imagination Gallery. Buzzing with entrepreneurial energy, the event was hosted by ITN’s Katie Ledger and opened by a tired-looking prime minister, who called the attendees ‘the best of Britain’, after managing to get a few laughs beforehand.

He went on to speak of ‘what can be achieved when people work together’, played to the crowd a little by saying that changes in technology were becoming more important in achieving this, and let it be known he hoped the third sector could play an even bigger role in future.

Afterwards, and not before the PM was whisked off to the Lambeth Conference, it was straight to the awards, when the entrepreneurs best engendering social change and community action were honoured by business and enterprise minister John Hutton.

Winners included Liftshare, a rapidly growing website assisting car users to share their vehicles, as well as Slivers of Time, who gather those busy folk seeking short term work, perhaps for only one shift, with those offering the jobs. Other winners included Make Your Mark, the national campaign to unlock the UK’s enterprise potential, and the People's Choice award winner The Freeconomy Community, whose founder cried 'long live the credit crunch' - pleasing some of the crowd, but perhaps not John Hutton, judging by the look on his face.

There were also awards for the social networking site for traveller youth Savvy Chavvy, the wi-fi utlising art project Freqout, and the Second-Life disabled peoples' website Wheelies. It might have been a little early in the morning for champagne, but there was a great 'getting to know you buzz' in the room, what with the man behind it all Oli Barrett introducing the 'speed dating' method to great effect.

The Catalyst Awards really did highlight some of the top work being done to change lives, with just a little help from technology and bright ideas. Cmypitch.com congratulates all the winners.