By Roz Morris, Managing Director, TV News London Ltd
I was delighted to attend the Women of the Year Lunch at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London, an outstanding and unique event honouring the achievements of women in the UK and across the world.
At my table I met Anya Pearson, of Mary Anning Rocks who campaigned successfully for a statue of 19th century fossil hunter May Anning to be erected in Lyme Regis, in Dorset earlier this year, and the inspiring Mandy Darling. Mandy, who is blind, is the Civic Mayor of Torbay, in Devon, and was accompanied by her guide dog, Pepsi and by her mayoral consort, Lily Beckett.
Also on my table was Figen Murray OBE whose son Martyn was killed in 2017 in the Manchester Arena bombing. Figen campaigns for peace and is the force behind Martyns’s Law, legislation requiring entertainment venues to improve security against the threat of terrorism, and requires that venues have a counter-terrorism plan. Her petition to make Martyn’s Law mandatory received over 23,000 signatures and is now on its way to becoming a reality. Figen’s work in counter-terrorism saw her awarded an OBE in the 2022 New Year’s Honours List.
Founded in 1955 by Lady Tony Lothian, a pioneering female journalist who decided that women and not just men needed to be recognised for their contributions to society, the Women of the Year Lunch is now in its 68th year and has never run out of outstanding women to invite and to present with awards. The Chair of the Lunch is currently Lady Louisa Vaughan, Tony Lothian’s granddaughter.
Hosted this year by former Great British Bake Off presenter, Mel Giedroyc, the Women of the Year Lunch Awards shine a light on women who have significant achievements. Celebrity guests included broadcaster Clare Balding, Line of Duty star Vicky McClure, chef Angela Hartnett, Baroness Floella Benjamin, actor Tamzin Outhwaite, TV presenter Sian Williams, author Kathy Lette, broadcaster Vanessa Feltz, Anneka Rice and Esther Rantzen.
ITV presenter, Lorraine Kelly, presented the ITV Lorraine Trailblazer award to Jacqueline Crawford. Since the Russian invasion, Jacqueline has helped send thousands of baby boxes to new mothers in Ukraine. The boxes which can be used as cribs are packed with pre-loved mother and baby essentials donated by Scottish mothers.
Lorraine told the PA news agency: “Right now it is very important for women in Iran, women in Afghanistan, women who are going through horrendous ordeals, and also in Ukraine, for us to show our support and solidarity to them.
“And in the past, this event has always done that. It is a show of strength which is very, very powerful and it is also really uplifting. It makes you want to do more and want to help more.”
She describes the Women of the Year awards as an “amazing” event which she has been involved with for several years. “It’s a chance for women from all walks of life, all ages, to get together and share their stories, and also to celebrate some incredible women,” she added.
ITV News broadcaster Julie Etchingham, President of Women of the Year, says: “I think this is a powerful event for all women because it is a moment of sisterhood where we come together to acknowledge each other’s talents and achievements.
“For those of us who are involved in the committee organising it, we are here to celebrate every single woman in this room. And we are just hoping that it sends out a really powerful message to women around the world, some of whom are enduring terribly tough times. Some of whom don’t have equality, women’s rights are still not being acknowledged or being adhered to, and I think the message in this room is a message of sisterhood and solidarity.”
During the 68th annual event, which was attended by 450 women, each of whom is invited because of their own achievements as a ‘woman of the year’, 7 special awards were handed out. As well as the ITV Lorraine award, awards also went to:
Kath Tregenna, Woman of Courage Award. Kath is a primary school teacher with two young children, who almost died of sepsis and had her arms and legs amputated. Despite this, she has continued teaching using bionic arms and legs. She says: “Losing my arms and legs has taught me that it’s not what you have in life, but who you have. Life is about people and their support and positivity around you, not about things.”
Nzambi Matee, Eco Champion Award. Nzambi is a Kenyan engineer, entrepreneur, and inventor who has developed bricks from waste plastic. She says: “Plastic is a material that is often misused and misunderstood. Its potential is enormous, but its afterlife can be disastrous.” Her company Gjenge Makers, employs 26 people and has more than a hundred volunteers working to combat plastic pollution in Kenya by mass-producing durable and long-lasting plastic bricks that are used in construction projects, including roads, buildings, and affordable housing.
Leanne Pero, Health Equality Campaigner Award, sponsored by Gilead and Kite. Leanne heads a charity running multiple projects working with charities to improve cancer care tailored to black and ethnic communities.
Juliet Sanders, Community Champion Award, sponsored by BP. Juliet is the founder of Feeding Families, a growing food poverty charity based in the North East of England, which has delivered more than 160,000 meals and more than 10,000 emergency food boxes in the past year, as well as 9,000 Christmas hampers.
Colleen Wong, Women of Innovation Award, sponsored by Vodafone Business. Founder of Techsixtyfour, Colleen is a former investment banker. When her second child was only 4 months old, Colleen witnessed a distressed parent searching for their small child in a crowd. This led her to come up to the idea for My Gator Watch, a wearable mobile phone and tracker for children. She has also launched Silver Circle, providing tech support solutions for older people.
Yvonne Bajela, Female Funder of the Year Award, sponsored by Linklaters. Yvonne is the Founding Member and Principal at Impact X Capital, a UK-based capital firm investing in female underrepresented entrepreneurs and aiming to end the disparity in funding to female and black businesspeople. Yvonne was previously a Senior Investment Manager at Mitsui & Co. where she led over $200 million in investments in companies.
The event also paid tribute to the achievements of women in sport following the success of the Lionesses at Euro 2022. Also attending the event were Dawn Airey, chairwoman of the FA Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship Football, and Debbie Hewitt, chairwoman of the FA.
