Stouby wins Village of the Year through community spirit

Stouby, a village between Juelsminde and Vejle, has been named Village of the Year 2026, according to DR. The award recognises the community’s strong volunteer spirit and efforts to welcome new residents.

Volunteers immediately began putting up signs announcing the title at the village entrances. Jimmi Brøndum, chairman of Stouby’s sports association, said the village had “a completely unique sense of togetherness”.

The award is presented for the 30th time by the Council for Rural Communities, the National Association of Villages in Denmark and Forenet Kredit. Committee chair Helene Simoni Thorup said Stouby had impressed the judges with its 40 associations and 872 residents.

New residents are welcomed with communal meals, while newcomers and tourists can join a guided tractor tour of the surrounding area in a wagon known locally as the “salatfadet”.

“They are a village with incredible resources and enormous energy,” Thorup said. She said the award was intended to highlight small communities where residents work to make their village a good place to live and to honour the volunteers who make things happen.

More than 400 residents attended a communal meal when the committee visited Stouby on Sunday. Volunteers served pork roast burgers at the event.

Jan Volmer, chairman of Stouby Multihus, was among those who had worked to secure the award. He said he shed a tear when he heard that Stouby had won.

“We really put everything into making sure we would win,” he said.

Volmer said the title could give Stouby’s development further momentum by showing potential newcomers that there was something to move to the village for. He said Stouby had previously been viewed as part of “outlying Denmark”, but that was no longer the case.

The village receives a prize of 50,000 kroner.