The 60th anniversary of the Women of the Year Lunch & Awards took place on Monday evening at the InterContinental London Park Lane to celebrate the achievements of extraordinary women.
Over 400 women joined Sandi Toksvig, president of Women of the Year, in the star studded event which saw six attendees crowned ‘women of the year’. The winners were chosen from across a range of different industries for their work in important matters facing females today.
The winners included Kristin Hallenga, founder of Coppafeel! who received the DFS Outstanding Young Campaigner award. In 2008, at the age of 23, Hallenga was diagnosed with breast cancer and was told that it had also spread to her spine. In response, she created Coppafeel! which aims to raise awareness of breast cancer and the importance of self-examination.
The Good Housekeeping Outstanding Achievement award went to Jayne Senior, the Rotherham whistle-blower. Senior was responsible for highlighting the lack of action from Rotherham council and police force in the face of child sex abuse. Her actions meant that thousands of vulnerable people are now being heard and getting justice.
This year’s ITV’s Lorraine Inspirational Woman of the Year award, voted for by the public, went to Pat Rogers. Rogers tragically lost her son in 2009, when he tried to resolve a fight in Blackburn town centre. In trying to deal with her grief, she founded the charity, ‘Every Action Has Consequences’ which aims to educate people on binge drinking and alcohol-induced violence.
On winning her award, Rogers said, “It’s a real honour to win the ITV’s Lorraine Inspirational Woman of the Year Award. It’s a wonderful opportunity for the work done by our charity to be recognised and to reach a national audience, so that more people may hear about our work and use our materials.”
The winners of the night were chosen by a select panel of judges who included Toksvig, Dame Tessa Jowell, Radio 4 presenter Sue MacGregor CBE, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, and ITV News’ Ronke Phillips amongst others.
The awards were attended by many celebrities including actress, Nicole Kidman, who opened the evening; comedian Jo Brand, Coronation Street star, Sally Dynevor; newscaster Julie Etchingham; and presenter, Lorraine Kelly.
Sandi Toksvig, “Women of the Year has celebrated the wonderful achievements of women since 1955. Everyone involved is incredibly proud to see so many extraordinary women carrying the torch of those who came before. The remarkable women who make up the attendees and winners at this year’s Lunch are being recognised for their strides in making the world a better place.”
To find out about all the winners of the night and for more information on the awards, click here.
