Inspirational Women

Last week we celebrated our annual Glass Slipper Awards; an afternoon to celebrate remarkable women across the North East. Recognising inspiring females from our region, across 7 categories, the awards were a truly inspirational event and we couldn’t be any prouder of the incredible women in the room who were recognised for their accolades. Honouring their achievements in their communities, in business and in charity, this year’s Glass Slipper awards were a truly unforgettable afternoon.

Located at the Hilton Gateshead, over two hundred and fifty guests were welcomed to a champagne reception, ahead of the awards. The glittering ceremony featured incredible floral displays, kindly created by our friends at Katherines Florists, and screen displays from the creative team at Big Purple Productions. All of our guests, including nominees, were treated to a sumptuous three course meal of soup, chicken and sunflower themed cupcakes, served alongside plenty of bubbles. Our fantastic host, BBC’s Anna Foster led the afternoon with Dr Joanna Berry as a guest speaker, inspiring all attendees with her “Be Kind” message.

Kicking off the award winners, our host announced the nominations for the North East Champion category, sponsored by Your homes Newcastle. The winner was Lynn McManus, the founder of charity Pathways4All, a charity has supported over 1200 families with 680 regular users including smaller charities and local special schools. Next up was the Remarkable Woman award, sponsored by Lowes, and winner Christine Stephenson of The Life of Reilly was delighted to be recognised for her inspiring blog about her son with autism.

Picking up the award for Outstanding Business leader, supported by Miss England, was Caroline Gitsham from WISH NE, which brings together women in social housing to engage with their peers, support each other and make new connections. Our unsung hero award, presented by our Charity director Siobhan Sargeant on behalf of sponsors Ant & Dec, was awarded to Julie Sanders, from Feeding families. Juliet is the founder and CEO of Feeding Families; a charity that brings families in need together with families who can provide at Christmas time.

Lauren Scobie scooped up the Young Achiever award, sponsored by Sunderland University, she competes in pageants and uses her platform to raise awareness and funds for charity as well as anti-bullying. Our Woman in the Community award, that was sponsored by Reach was particularly special as it was voted for by the public. Angeline Lucas from North East dance cooperative was the inspirational winner. Angeline is devoted to increasing equality of opportunity within the dance sector and promoting accessible high-standard educational/cultural experiences for all.

As always, we couldn’t host such an incredible afternoon without the amazing support of our volunteers, who helped ensure the day was so well organised and all of our guests were having a wonderful afternoon. We also want to thank all of our fantastic stalls who participated in the event and to those who donated incredible raffle prizes to us, ensuring we raised lots of donations on the day to The Sunshine Fund. And to The Bigger Picture for capturing the day, with images that truly encompass the electric atmosphere that was felt in the room. Thank you!

Finally, thank you so much to all those who attended, our amazing nominees and our incredible winners. The room was in awe of all you do.

Katie x