THE WINNERS 2026

BRITISH DIVERSITY AWARDS 2026 WINNERS

Sir Lenny Henry receives Lifetime Achievement Award for decades of diversity advocacy across the creative industries
Comedian Chris McCausland wins Media Champion of the Year, England Hockey Player Tess Howard MBE picks up Athlete Empowering Positive Change
Other winners include Trans is Human, Sky, BDO UK and more across 18 categories

London, Wednesday 25 March 2026 – The winners of the British Diversity Awards 2026 have been revealed at a star-studded ceremony at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House, celebrating the individuals and organisations driving meaningful change across diversity, equity and inclusion in the UK.

Among the headline honourees, Sir Lenny Henry was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of more than four decades of advocacy for diversity and representation across the UK’s creative industries, while Ria Hebden and Chris McCausland were named joint winners of the Media Champion of the Year category.

Sir Lenny Henry was recognised for his long-standing impact in driving change across the media landscape. From his landmark 2014 BAFTA Television Lecture to co-founding the Sir Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity, his work has brought national attention to representation and continues to influence progress across television, film and journalism. Alongside his on-screen career, his production company Esmerelda has championed underrepresented voices, while his role as co-founder of Comic Relief has helped raise over £1 billion to tackle poverty and social injustice.

The annual awards, headline sponsored by LSEG, brought together leading figures from business, entertainment, sport and grassroots organisations. Hosted by Dr Ranj Singh and Charlene White, the evening also featured a special live performance from chart-topping boy band Blue.

Other major winners on the night included:

Community Project of the Year – Trans is Human

Head of Diversity of the Year – Reema Samuel-Lewis (Sky UK Ltd)

Changemaker of the Year – Natalie Ojevah MBE (Barclays)

Diversity Team of the Year – Community and Culture Team (CBRE)

Charity or Not-for-Profit of the Year – HAWA Multicultural Services CIC

Inspirational Role Model of the Year – Tokeer Ahmed (Capgemini)

Athlete Powering Positive Change – Tess Howard MBE

Outstanding Employee Network of the Year – Menopause Network (Barratt Redrow)

Outstanding Women’s Network of the Year – WiNTR (Women in Non-Traditional Roles) (National Grid)

Outstanding Ability Network of the Year – RespectAbility (Manchester Airports Group)

Outstanding LGBTQIA Network of the Year – LGBTQ+ at Sky (Sky UK Ltd)

Outstanding Ethnicity Network of the Year – REACH (Kingsley Napley)

Social Mobility Initiative of the Year – Digilearning x Accenture Social Mobility Month (Accenture)

Diversity Champion of the Year – Brendan Hegarty (NatWest Social & Community Capital)

Global Diversity Initiative of the Year – The ‘Equity Engine’ Initiative (King)

Company of the Year – BDO UK

Media Champion of the Year – Chris McCausland and Ria Hebden

Lifetime Achievement – Sir Lenny Henry

British Diversity Awards 2026 Highly Commended:

Community Project of the Year – Ability Today (Academy for Disabled Journalists)

Head of Diversity of the Year – Rebecca Ormond (SMBC Group)

Changemaker of the Year – Dr Kamran Iqbal (Chiesi UK)

Diversity Team of the Year – Global Diversity and Inclusion Team (Standard Chartered)

Inspirational Role Model of the Year – Jo Powell (Deutsche Bank)

Athlete Empowering Positive Change – Ellie Simmonds MBE

Outstanding Employee Network of the Year – Journey ERG (HSBC UK)

Outstanding Women’s Network of the Year – Connected Women (ScottishPower)

Outstanding Ability Network of the Year – DHL Supply Chain Abilities Alliance (DHL)

Outstanding LGBTQIA Network of the Year – Wipro Europe Pride ERG (Wipro)

Outstanding Ethnicity Network of the Year – Race Equality Network (University of Birmingham)

Social Mobility Initiative of the Year – Mental Health Research For All (NIHR Applied Research Collaboration North Thames)

Diversity Champion of the Year – Charlotte Helliwell (Lockton)

Global Diversity Initiative of the Year – Building Forever (De Beers Group)

Company of the Year – ScottishPower