The British Diversity Awards have revealed this year’s winners at an awards ceremony held in London this week. Winners includeBritish institutions, large companies, corporate leaders and a children’s charity.
The British Diversity Awards, celebrate leading diversity and inclusion champions, recognising achievements over the past year across ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and religious beliefs. The awards ceremony, headline sponsored by Burberry, took place at the Great Room at the five-star Grosvenor House Hotel and was hosted by Sky News presenter, Gillian Joseph and NHS doctor and television presenter, Dr Ranj Singh.
Heathrow Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Team were crowned Haleon Diversity Team of Year, while elsewhere it was a big night for Financial companies at the star-studded ceremony which saw the likes of television personality Christine McGuiness and Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes attending.
In a momentous evening for HSBC, their Global Digital Accessibility Programme took home the BT Group sponsored Diversity in Technology specific to Disability award. HSBC Innovation Banking also saw off stiff competition, from the likes of Mace and Moneypenny, to take home the coveted National Grid Company of the Year crown. EMCOR UK’s Identity Group was awarded the Financial Times partnered Outstanding LGBTQIA Network of the Year, and Deon Fang from Clifford Chance won the Leathwaite backed Diversity Champion of the Year accolade. Meanwhile, Jason Lee won the Greene King sponsored Media Champion in the Public Eye for his commitment to addressing racism and discrimination in football.
COMMITTED TO INCLUSION, RESPECT & DIVERSITY
It was also a big night for community projects and charities. The Kindness Postbox won the Centrica sponsored Community Project of the Year whilst charity Be Kind Movement were awarded the prestigious Burberry Charity of the Year prize. The charity works to build future generations of emotionally intelligent children, who can lead and influence their workplaces, family lives and communities with compassion, equality, inclusion, respect and diversity. As the winning charity they also took home a generous donation from Burberry.
Bob Bakish, President and Chief Executive Officer at Paramount won the Attest sponsored Outstanding Commitment to Global Diversity award for his work promoting Diversity and Inclusion across all strands of Paramount globally, from the content on our screens to his advocacy within the 24,500 strong workforce.
SUPPORTING DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
“These awards are all about celebrating those who’ve put in the hard work to support Diversity and Inclusion, inspiring others to become involved. I really hope we saw that reflected tonight,” stated British Diversity Awards founder Linda Riley.“The companies and business leaders who received awards are a testament to the tremendous efforts being made in the corporate world to promote Diversity and Inclusion.”
Adding to her comments, Burberry’s Chief People Officer Alexandra McCauley, said: “We are delighted to support the British Diversity Awards again this year, and to celebrate the individuals and organisations driving progress towards a more diverse, equitable and inclusive world.
We all have an important role to play in reaching this shared vision, and this year’s recipients are testament to what can be achieved with passion and commitment. Congratulations to all of the winners for their outstanding contribution to furthering this mission.”
BRITISH DIVERSITY AWARDS WINNERS
The fill list of winners for this year’s British Diversity Awards 2024, include:
Community Project of the Year sponsored by Centrica
- Winner: The Kindness Postbox
- Highly Commended: SEN Parents in Swale
- Highly Commended: Windrush Memories of Arrival, CIRCA
Head of Diversity of the Year sponsored by Sedulo
- Winner: Chanelle Gray, Savills UK
- Highly Commended: Oliver Holmes, Browne Jacobson
Hero of the Year sponsored by Boots
- Winner: Emma Riley, RX
- Highly Commended: Ambily Banerjee, Johnson & Johnson
Diversity in Technology (Disability) sponsored by BT Group
- Winner: Global Digital Accessibility Programme, HSBC
- Highly Commended: Signapse
Diversity Team of the Year sponsored by Haleon
- Winner: Heathrow Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Team, Heathrow Airport Ltd
- Highly Commended: EMEA Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Team, JPMorgan Chase
Charity or Not-For-Profit of the Year sponsored by Burberry
- Winner: Be Kind Movement
Inspirational Role Model of the Year sponsored by Lockton
- Winner: Victoria Monk, CSM Sport & Entertainment
- Highly Commended: Rakesh Thakrar, Phoenix Group
Outstanding Employee Network of the Year sponsored by Atlanta
- Winner: Forces Community Network, Centrica
- Highly Commended: Mental Wellbeing ERG, OLIVER
HR Champion of the Year sponsored by Ruebik
- Winner: Zoe Brunswick, RSK Group
- Highly Commended: Janeace Thompson, PRS for Music
Outstanding Women’s Network of the Year sponsored by Financial Times
- Winner: Win UK, Barclays
- Highly Commended: Women in Aerospace UK ERG, Actuation Systems | Collins Aerospace
Diversity Champion of the Year sponsored by Leathwaite
- Winner: Deon Fang, Clifford Chance
- Highly Commended: Akua Opong, LSEG
Outstanding Ability Network of the Year sponsored by Allianz Commercial
- Winner: Neurodiversity Network, Legal & General Group
- Highly Commended: ABLE, AXA UK
Global Diversity Initiative of the Year sponsored by LSEG
- Winner: Teens in AI
- Highly Commended: In Their Shoes, VIVIDA working together with HSBC
Outstanding LGBTQIA Network of the Year sponsored by HSBC Innovation Banking
- Winner: Identity Group, EMCOR UK
- Highly Commended: Pride Matters, Colt Technology Services
Media Champion in the Public Eye sponsored by Greene King
- Winner: Jason Lee
Outstanding Ethnicity Network of the Year sponsored by Paramount
- Winner: Black Affinity Group, Latham & Watkins LLP
- Highly Commended: Culture and Ethnicity Network, NTT DATA UK&I
Social Mobility Initiative of the Year sponsored by AMS
- Winner: PA in the Community, PA Consulting
- Highly Commended: Bank of America x upReach
Company of the Year sponsored by National Grid
- Winner: HSBC Innovation Banking UK
- Highly Commended: Mace
Outstanding Commitment to Diversity sponsored by Attest
- Winner: Bob Bakish, Paramount
Check out last year’s winners here.