Businesses across West Lancashire are being encouraged to nominate themselves for the Queen’s Award for Enterprise 2022, one of the most prestigious awards for UK businesses.
Winners of The Queen’s Awards are permitted to use the recognised Royal Emblem for five years. This Royal endorsement has got previous winner’s businesses noticed, above and beyond the competition, both at home and overseas, and helps them to compete on the world stage with much larger companies. And with Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee taking place next year, now is the perfect time for West Lancashire businesses to be recognised for your achievements.
In 2021, over 90% of winners were SMEs, with 44 businesses having 10 employees or less.
The Queen’s Award for Enterprise scheme has four categories:
- Innovation
- International trade
- Sustainable development
- Promoting opportunity (through social mobility)
Eligibility
Businesses have been affected in many shapes and forms by things such as Brexit, flooding and COVID-19. To support this, the application process has been amended to ensure you are able to provide appropriate evidence to support your application, despite factors which could have prevented you from doing as well as you had originally predicted for 2021/22.
To apply for the Queen’s Award for Enterprise your business must:
- be based in the UK (including the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man)
- file its Company Tax Returns with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
- be a self-contained enterprise that markets its own products or services and is under its own management
- have at least 2 full-time UK employees or part-time equivalents
- demonstrate strong corporate social responsibility
Each Award category has its own additional eligibility criteria. A full list of the eligibility criteria can be found on the website here.
Your organisation can be a business or non-profit.
The Award is presented by Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant at their premises which is a great opportunity to gain press coverage and celebrate together with their employees, local MP, local authority representatives, supply chain and other stakeholders. Winners will also be invited to a celebratory Royal reception.
Should you require any support or assistance, please either contact your local Lord-Lieutenants’ office or contact The Queen’s Awards Office via email: queensawards@beis.gov.uk or telephone: 020 7215 6880 who will be happy to help you.