Deadline looms for Queen's Awards for Enterprise applications

Businesses in Devon are being reminded that the application deadline for the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise is just over two weeks away.

HM Lord-Lieutenant of Devon, David Fursdon, and Devon County Council are encouraging firms across the county to apply for the renowned awards, which are now in their 50th year, to showcase Devon’s thriving and innovative business organisations.

The Devon Lieutenancy and the Devon Delivers Ambassadors’ programme run by Devon County Council held an event at Bovey Castle in June to promote the awards to Devon’s business community.

The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, which are run by The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), are the UK’s most prestigious business awards. They are presented by the Lord-Lieutenant, the Queen’s representative in the county. The deadline for applications is Friday 2 September 2016.

Lord-Lieutenant of Devon David Fursdon said: “As businesses look for new ways to promote themselves, particularly as we develop new trading relationships abroad, I hope that they will consider putting themselves forward for the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise which provides, for winners, a recognised stamp of approval. This has provided a real boost for previous winners and I would love to see Devon businesses apply for this potential accolade before the deadline.”

The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are free to enter. Businesses from all sectors and of all sizes can apply in one of the four categories: Innovation, International Trade, Sustainable Development and a new category of Promoting Opportunity through social mobility.

This new category is for organisations that have had a social mobility programme running for more than two years which applicants must show has had a positive impact on commercial success over two or five years. Improvements should be made in the areas such as work experience, careers advice or mentoring for young people, offering non-graduate routes such as traineeships or changing recruitment practices, or giving equal support and progression opportunities to all employees.

Councillor Andrew Leadbetter, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Economy and Growth, said: “We’re extremely proud of Devon’s business community and there are so many companies in the county that deserve national recognition. We hope that the event we held earlier in the summer has inspired some organisations to submit an application. I’d encourage Devon businesses to take this opportunity to share their achievements with, potentially, a global audience. The Queen's Awards for Enterprise recognise and promote business excellence in the UK and they have proven to be an effective way of driving growth.”

To be eligible for the Queen’s Awards an organisation must:
- be based in the UK;
- be a self-contained enterprise that markets its own products or services;
- have at least two full time employees or part-time equivalents;
- demonstrate strong corporate social responsibility.

Winners of the awards are able to display the esteemed Queen’s Awards emblem on their products for five years. They are also invited to a reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by Her Majesty the Queen, and HM Lord-Lieutenant presents them with an engraved crystal bowl made by Devon’s own Dartington Crystal.

Businesses in Devon that have previously been presented with The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise include Aero Stanrew, based in Barnstaple, Simpleware, based in Exeter, Centek, based in Newton Abbot, and Moo Free Chocolates, in Holsworthy.

The Devon Delivers Ambassadors programme is part of the County Council’s campaign to attract business to Devon. The programme promotes the county as a business location through its ambassadors – some of the most successful businesses and major stakeholders such as the University of Exeter, the Met Office, Exeter International Airport, Axminster Tools, Foot Anstey, Darts Farm and many more.

Information on The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise can be found on www.gov.uk/queens-awards-for-enterprise and a guide on how to enter is available at http://devon.cc/qae-guide

For more information about Devon Delivers and the Devon Delivers ambassador scheme visit www.investdevon.co.uk/ambassadors.