Manchester to host Women of the Year Awards for the first time

The Women of the Year Luncheon and Awards has announced its 2024 Awards will be taking place for the first time in Manchester at The Etihad on the 11th of October, with an expected 400 guests in attendance.

The event, in its 42nd year, celebrates the achievements of exceptional women across the UK.

This is the first time the organisation has selected Manchester to host the awards, and in recognition of the city where the suffragette movement famously began, there is a new category named The Emmeline Award – Woman of Courage.

The Women of the Year Awards

The awards’ headline sponsor for 2024 is award-winning bank Aldermore which is returning for its second year.

Other key sponsors include law firm Freeths LLP, LSH Auto, Pertemps PLC, Roland Dransfield PR, and Strategi Solutions.

The team behind Women of the Year recently came together with 2023 winners and supporters at The Etihad to further celebrate the winners and their achievements.

The evening also gave a taste of what the Women of the Year Luncheon and Awards has in store for 2024.

In attendance were Zalena Vandrewala, managing associate at national law firm, Freeths LLP, who is chair of the board of Women of the Year alongside Manchester-based actress Sally Lindsay, president of the organisation.

Business Woman of the Year Award Clair Heaviside

2023 winner of the Business Woman of the Year award Clair Heaviside, co-founder and creative director of Manchester-based Serotonin Digital Marketing Agency, also attended to celebrate alongside her alumni.

Zalena Vandrewala said: “We are thrilled to be bringing our established event to Manchester this year. Manchester is central to the history of women, and we had to recognise it with the introduction of our new category, The Emmeline Award – Woman of Courage.

“The awards celebrate great achievements by women across society, not just in business. We want to promote the inspirational role models amongst us and what better place to do so than Manchester – the birthplace of the Suffragette movement.”

Supporting the Prince’s Trust

Women of the Year is also a proud supporter of The Prince’s Trust, last year donating £13,000 to the charity.

Further information on nominations for 2024 will be revealed at the official launch of the 2024 Awards taking place at the House of Lords on 7 March 2024.

About Women of the Year

The Women of the Year Luncheon & Awards was established in Nottingham in 1982 as a ladies’ luncheon to raise monies for a charity called The Winged Fellowship Trust.

Over 40 years on, we continue to support our chosen charities each year.

In recent times we have been proud to support charities including Revitalise, Marie Curie and The Princes Trust: Women Supporting Women.

Over the years, the event has grown from being a regional ladies’ luncheon to a national awards ceremony with a key focus on business.

The event now plays host to around 400 guests and recognises the achievements of women in business and women who have strived to achieve the unthinkable in the most challenging of circumstances across the country.

You can find out more about the Women of the Year Awards on their website here