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Awards 2024 FAQ's 

WHEN?

Nominations are open from Friday 8th March at midday (International Women’s Day) until Wednesday 15th May at midday.

We will announce the Shortlist on Tuesday, 10th September. That day, we will email every nominee with the results.

WHO?

The key under-lying test is ‘are they working in defence of the United Kingdom?’ If yes, that’s fine. They don’t have to be a UK citizen to qualify. Please note that an existing Winner cannot be nominated for another award for two years following their win. 

Seven categories are for individual women only. Three categories are for any individual and/or teams. Please check each category criteria for details on who can be nominated for each award.

Yes you can. There is no limit on how many nominations you can submit, but you can’t submit essentially the same citation for the same person for different categories. Please choose one category for one nomination – no ‘hedging your bets’! If we think the citation would be a better fit in another category, we will move it and let you know.

Anyone can nominate an individual or team, however, entries will not be accepted from the partner, spouse or other close family member of a nominee.  Remember that you have to their permission to share any personal details.

HOW?

Nominating someone is simple, just go to the Women in Defence UK 2024 Awards Nominations form, but  we advise that you read this first!  

To nominate, follow these easy steps:  

  1. Provide the contact details of your nominee, please note the need to confirm that you have their agreement to share their details.  
  2. Tell us briefly why you think they deserve to be nominated (the citation part of the nomination form).  
  3. Provide your own contact details.  

The citation part of the nomination form is broken down into three elements:  

  1. An overview of why you are nominating this individual or team (maximum of 200 words).  
  2. An explanation of how they have demonstrated the criteria for this award category (maximum of 200 words).  
  3. Examples of the results they have achieved as supporting evidence (maximum of 200 words).  

The 200-word limit. Even if the form allows you to enter more words, the citation sent for judging will be shortened if it exceeds this limit, which could mean that it ends mid-sentence.  

As many as you can! Great evidence helps the judges to decide between candidates. Don’t forget to avoid acronyms!

Put yourself in the judges’ shoes, they read lots of citations so capture their attention early, be concise and provide context. It may be obvious to you why an achievement is so worthy of recognition, but our judges may not have the same background or experience so please explain the significance. 

Providing context to the citation (i.e. sphere of work, day to day tasks, key challenges, etc.), and tangible evidence of the outcome or effect that this had on others will strengthen the nomination hugely. Our judges may not be familiar with all parts of the defence enterprise so avoid, or at the very least explain, acronyms. 

We will email you and your nominee as soon as we’ve processed the nomination. This will usually be within three working days of receipt, although as the volume of nominations increases towards the end of the nominations window, this can take a few days longer. If you are at all concerned, please email us on awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk and we can quickly check submissions for you.

So that we can reach with you with any queries, please supply your telephone number, email address and postal address. We need the same information where possible for your nominee. Don't forget to check that you have their permission to share their personal data.

For equity and fairness, as not all of our nominees have a public presence, we advise our judges not to follow any links in the citation. For the same reason, we advise that they don’t undertake any further research about nominees on LinkedIn or other Social platforms. They judge purely on what is written in the citation.

We are unable to accept or hold any material classified higher than the basic OFFICIAL level. Please ensure that nothing contained in the nomination is classified higher than that.

WHAT HAPPENS IF?

Please email us at awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk and we will be able to help.

Please contact us at awards@womenindefenceuk.co.uk.

Awards Criteria

Want to make sure you choose the best category for your nominee? Each one has its own criteria.

Read the category criteria here