Purple has been ‘Highly Commended’ in the award category of Innovation in Diversity and Equality at the prestigious 2018 UK Excellence Awards.
The ceremony took place on Thursday 15 March 2018 at the Guildhall – London’s powerhouse since the 12th century. The Awards, run by the British Quality Foundation, showcases excellence, innovators, leaders and performance improvement across UK business. This year, the BQF celebrated their 25th anniversary.
The Innovation in Diversity and Equality category was a new award for the BQF, introduced to celebrate those organisations who champion equality, diversity and human rights every day. Organisation’s needed to demonstrate a strong ethos of ‘opportunity for all’ and giving every individual a chance to achieve their potential, free from prejudice and discrimination. The award was won by BT.
Purple’s Jury Commendation Award was for work on pre-employment support for disabled people. Pre-employment support involves building the skills and confidence required to progress into the labour market. Purple’s approach is personalised in the form of ‘Job Clubs’ which take place on a weekly basis with the aim of supporting disabled people, of all impairments, to gain the skills they require so they are able to gain employment or voluntary work after the 12-week course.
Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal was guest of honour at the event, opening the Awards ceremony and hosting a private reception ahead of the Awards.
Pat Gaudin, Purple Director, says:
‘It was an honour to attend the private reception with Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal, and to see the work Purple do acknowledged on a national stage. Our approach to disability is innovative and fresh, and I am delighted our leadership in this field has been recognised’
So far, Purple’s Job Clubs have supported seven cohorts of disabled people, with 50% of participants either acquiring paid work, a volunteering opportunity, or further training at the end of the course. Participants also stated they felt more confident they would be successful in finding employment after attending the course, and 100% stated lack of motivation was no longer a factor in why they had not found a work opportunity.
On the same night, Purple was also shortlisted in the Disability Confident category at the RIDI Awards. The Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative recognises disability confident recruiters at their annual awards.
Purple supports disabled people to realise their aspirations, as well as supporting business to increase their disability confidence.
Photography provided by davidcopeman.co.uk