EDI team success at the National Inclusion Awards

This fantastic achievement is in recognition of their work to create an inclusive environment for our students and staff.

We were highly commended in the Organisational Impact for Inclusion award category. This award recognises organisations that can demonstrate meaningful and sustained improvements in equity, diversity and inclusion.

Members of our EDI team attended an awards lunch to collect their award last Thursday (15 October 2026) at Cedar Court Hotel in Huddersfield, alongside the two other finalists for the award - the University of East London (UEL) and Hartpury University and College.

Angela Johnson, EDI Business Partner, one of the members of the team who collected the award, explained: “Being shortlisted and receiving a Highly Commended recognition celebrates more than the good work we do. It recognises the impact of that work on the people around us. This was truly a collective achievement, made possible by colleagues across the organisation working together to turn our commitment to inclusion into meaningful action."

Louise Whitman, Senior Change Manager in the EDI team, added: “There were 15 organisations shortlisted, all of whom are doing some really impressive work on diversity and inclusion, so we were thrilled to reach the final three and be given the Highly Commended (joint second) award.

“Although the University of East London took home the top award, the judges said it they had found it difficult to separate the top three organisations. This is a significant achievement, particularly given UEL’s incredibly strong reputation for diversity and its location in one of the UK’s most multicultural cities.”

The National Inclusion Awards recognise achievements across social justice leadership, organisational impact and lifetime achievement, bringing together individuals and institutions from across the UK.

The Organisational Impact Award considers evidence of change across organisational culture and behaviours, individual and organisational learning, and systems, policies and processes.

Finalists were selected following a rigorous judging process examining measurable impact across areas including organisational culture, learning initiatives and policy.