Yesterday, we held our annual Impact Awards to celebrate and thank the people and organisations who have supported the EY Foundation over the past twelve months.

Our two fantastic co-hosts, Noor and Anita – who graduated from our Met Futures programme earlier this year, guided us through the event.

We announced 10 worthy winners from the 31 brilliant nominees; shared people’s pledges in support of young people; and heard from programme alumni spanning the past four years, social entrepreneurs, and some very special guests including GB Hockey Captain and double Olympic medallist, Hollie Pearne-Webb.

Keynote speaker Lord Karan Bilimoria presented our two Employer Champions with their awards, commenting on the impact of recent events on young people:

From an incredibly strong cohort of nominees we were delighted to recognise the contribution our winners have made to the EY Foundation. Hear about their efforts and achievements…

Olivia Agbe – Young Ambassador of the Year

From reaching out asking to get involved and taking part in panel discussions to playing a large role in the launch of our race survey, Olivia has been an extremely strong Ambassador in the past year. She has made a huge, positive impact on our volunteers, employers and other supporters.

Max Vaseckis – Fundraiser of the Year

Max has supported every conceivable area of the EY Foundation; from working group lead, to programme delivery, to fundraising. He has helped to source volunteers, supported in volunteer training and mentored a Kickstart young person. He has shown passion and commitment to EY Foundation and we are so grateful for everything he continues to do year on year.

James Adeleke - Accelerate Entrepreneur of the Year

James has been a fantastic asset to the Accelerate programme; he is a constant source of inspiration and support for those in his community. Generation Success is doing great work creating opportunities for young people.

Harry Hawes – Supporter of the Year

Harry has driven and championed the work of the EYF within the Newcastle Office. He has set up a working group that supports in finding volunteers internally and externally. He has also been involved in delivering programmes and fundraising. Harry’s motivation and dedication is a great example for other offices!

Natasha Woolman, The Virtual College – Education Partner of the Year

The Virtual College/Schools are an often unseen part of the education system, championing the education and futures of young people in care, who often face disruption in their education. Natasha is our lead at London Borough of Hounslow and is relentless in encouraging, believing in and creating opportunities for young people. She has been instrumental in the pilot of Beyond Your Limits and is a champion for every young person that she works with.

Neil Whyte – Mentor of the Year

Neil has shown passion and enthusiasm when working with multiple mentees. Their responses have been incredibly positive, giving Neil great praise for the support he continues to offer, and it has been great to see what a real difference and impact he has made.

Kris Dowling – Fundraiser of the Year

A remarkable DIY fundraiser who just finished the epic Pacific Crest Trail to raise money for charity. For 5 months, Kris has trekked 2,640 miles through the desert of Southern California, the snow-packed Sierra Nevada, the forests of Northern Carolina and Oregon, and the Northern Cascades of Washington State before finishing at the Canadian border. Great effort!

Metropolitan Police – Employer Partner of the Year

The team at Metropolitan Police have shown strong dedication to developing the partnership and kept the momentum going even during lockdown, receiving excellent feedback from the many young people they continue to support through the Met Futures programme including our Impact Awards co-hosts! 

Sue Brooks – Employer Champion

Sue has supported events across the year that brought a wide range of UK employers and EY Foundation programme alumni together to talk about the benefits of building out a diverse talent pipeline and has laid the foundation for some current employer partners on the Tech Smart Futures programme, including the Office for National Statistics.

Simon Constance – Employer Champion

Simon has demonstrated what “best practice” looks like when championing the EY Foundation to organisations within his network. He has introduced the Foundation to key partners including Blue Prism, UiPath, and Azur Group and has been instrumental in helping to shape the EY Foundation’s strategy on the new Tech Smart Futures programme, launched in 2021.

The awards are available to watch on-demand: https://youtu.be/zeNPeZ8FqSc