Terms & Conditions of Entry
Entry deadline – Midday Friday 1st May 2026
Eligibility
1. The Women in Defence UK Awards consist of eleven categories. Ten categories are for individuals, teams and groups working in the defence of the United Kingdom. The eleventh category, the International category, is to recognise those individual women, teams and groups who are working in defence of their own country.
2. The following categories are open to individual women only:
- Emerging Talent
- Innovation and Sustainability
- Inspirational
- Most Collaborative
- Outstanding Contribution
- Resolute Spirit
- Unsung Heroines
3. The following categories are open to individuals of any gender and/or teams or groups:
- Equity of Opportunity
- Champion for Maximising Talent
4. The International Award is open to individual women, teams and groups who are working in defence of their own country.
5. The Inclusive Teamwork category is only open to teams.
Nomination submissions
6. All entries must be submitted by the entry deadline, as specified above. Entries will not be considered fully submitted until the nominator proceeds to the final stage and submits their entry. Both nominee and nominator will receive a confirmation email once the nomination has been processed by the Women in Defence UK team.
7. Each entry must be made using the agreed entry forms only. Attention should be paid to the entry criteria specific to each category. In all cases, the judges will be looking for concise written submissions. Please keep the word count for each of the three sections of the citation to 200 words. Any words above that 200-word limit will be deleted before the citation is sent for judging.
8. AI can be used to create all or part of the citation. If used, it is the nominator’s personal responsibility to ensure that all company or organisational security, privacy and information management protocols have been followed. The nominator must be transparent about whether AI has been used.
9. The citation must reflect a true and accurate account of the attributes, achievements and impact of the actions of the individual or team. Irrespective of how the citations are written, Women in Defence UK requires all nominators to verify that the citations are factually correct.
10. Nominators are responsible for ensuring that information provided in the citation does not exceed the classification of ‘Official’. Information that is ‘Official Sensitive’ or higher must not be included.
11. Women in Defence UK reserves the right in its absolute discretion to move entries from one category to another if deemed appropriate.
Accessibility Statement
12. Women in Defence UK is committed to ensuring that the Awards application process is accessible to everyone. Our nominations form is fully digital; however, we recognise that digital formats may not meet the needs of all users.
13. If you experience any difficulties using the form, require the information in an alternative format, or need support completing your application, please contact us at awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk. A member of the team will be happy to assist you. We want all nominees and nominators to be able to participate fully, and we will make every reasonable adjustment to support accessibility needs.
Nomination exceptions
14. Entries will not be accepted from the partner, spouse or other close family member of a nominee.
15. Please note that any Category Winners are excluded from nominations for any Women in Defence UK Award for 2 years.
Nomination modification/disqualification
16. Should the details underpinning the citation change substantially after submission so that the citation is no longer valid, the nominator must inform Women in Defence UK.
17. Women in Defence UK reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any nominee at any time if the nominee acts in a manner deemed by the Women in Defence UK Awards management as not befitting a Women in Defence UK Award nominee. Women in Defence UK will not enter into any correspondence on a disqualification. In the event of disqualification, the nominee will not be permitted to use the Women in Defence UK Awards branding and logo.
18. Women in Defence UK reserves the right to cancel any or all of the categories and the Awards Ceremonies at any time in its absolute discretion.
Data management and publicity
19. All persons nominating individuals or teams must make sure that they obtain consent from their chosen nominee, or point of contact for a team, that the individual, and all members of the relevant team, are happy for their personal data to be processed by Women in Defence UK and its partners in this manner for the purposes of the Awards.
20. If you are nominating a person or team for an award or are a nominee, your contact details may be shared with the Awards Partners or other interested parties but only when necessary for the purposes of administering the Awards.
21. All nominees who are Shortlisted or selected to be a Finalist must agree to publicity. If you are unable to meet this requirement, you must inform Women in Defence UK as soon as you are notified of your nomination. You should email awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk. An inability to take part in publicity will not be shared with any judging panel and will not affect your chances of reaching the Shortlist or being selected to be a Finalist.
22. All nominees who are Shortlisted or selected to be a Finalist are expected to provide a profile image and profile for use in promotions and publicity for long-term/archival use. This may include the use of the nominee’s profile, image or images captured at any Women in Defence UK Awards events. Women in Defence UK and its partners may use the Shortlisted nominees/Finalists’ images in all forms of media, including social media, print, and partner channels. If you are unable to meet this requirement, you must inform Women in Defence UK as soon as you are notified of your selection for the Shortlist. You should email awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk. All nominees’ personal data will be held and processed in accordance with the Women in Defence UK Privacy Policy.
23. Finalists and Winners may state in advertising/promotional activity and on their letterhead that they are a Winner or Finalist, but this must include the category and the year in which the award was won. Any other use will require written permission from Women in Defence UK.
The Shortlisting Event and Awards Dinner
24. Any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the nominees, or their nominators will not be reimbursed.
25. Those Shortlisted and those selected as Finalists should be available to attend the Shortlisting Event and the Awards Dinner on the date advertised on the Awards website (as appropriate). If you are unable to attend, you may nominate someone to attend and collect your Award on your behalf. Winners may be required to answer questions asked by the compère.
26. The Awards Dinner, in addition to being held at a physical location, may be livestreamed and videotaped for website inclusion. Nominees consent to the use of their digital rights.
By submitting an entry, you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions.