On Thursday 11th March 2021, iNetwork held their Annual Innovation Award Ceremony. This year the event was held virtually for the very first time and we extended the invite to all of the membership, to join us in celebrating innovation across the local public sector. Steven Pleasant MBE, Chair of iNetwork opened the ceremony and welcomed guests to the event.
Our compere for the evening was John Watson, BBC Sports. John Invited guests to share their thoughts in the virtual chat and introduced each category award presenter. This year, there were 8 award categories including our COVID-19 Response Recognition Award.
The first category of the night was for the Transforming & Innovating Public Services (TIPS) Award. This award recognised teams and organisations that have successfully implemented change for people and places. The wining project demonstrated evidence of improved outcomes through innovative citizen focused solutions in the areas of data, technology and/or culture change. The award was presented by Matt Skinner, FutureGov & Rahna Riley, Rochdale Borough Council and the winner was:
St Helens Borough Council – St Helens WoW (Ways of Working) Programme
The second category was for the Connected Procurement & Commissioning (CPC) Award. This award recognised initiatives that: tackle social outcomes that are important to the public sector; that deliver savings and efficiencies; and/or cross sector benefits from innovative collaborative working between commissioners and procurement professionals. The award was presented by Gavin Rimmington, YPO & Peter Schofield, Manchester City Council and the winner was:
Greater Manchester NHS – COVID-19 – The catalyst for doing things differently
The third category was for the Effective Information Sharing & Security (EISS) Award. This award recognised projects that facilitated the secure storage, sharing, and/or use of sensitive information to deliver more efficient and effective services for users whilst ensuring that personal information is protected. The award was presented by David Willis, GMHSCP & Lesley Bullen, The Guinness Partnership, and the winner was:
NAFN Data and Intelligence Services (Tameside MBC) – NAFN COVID-19 Business Grant Fraud Alert
The fourth category was for the iStandUK Award. This award recognised projects that demonstrated innovation and achievement in the effective use of data and information standards to improve services, to enable information transparency and/or to enable common understanding of a key issue. The award was presented by Paul Davidson, iStandUK & Phil Swan, GMCA, and the winner was:
Adur & Worthing Councils with Buckinghamshire County Council & Leeds City Council – OpenCommunity: Setting the Community Services Data Standard
After all our programme awards were announced, we moved on to the Partner Excellence Award. This award exists to celebrates innovation, collaboration, efficiency and going the extra mile in partnership working. The award was presented by Sharon Senior, NW Employers, and the winners were:
All shortlisted finalists who attended on the night submitted fantastic projects this year and alongside this were required to submit a short video on their project. View all of this year’s shortlisted finalists and all the video submissions.
All shortlisted finalists were then automatically entered in the next category for the Most Creative Video Award. This award recognised the originality and ingenuity to create inspired, fun and/or impactful video content. The award was presented by Shelley Heckman, iNetwork, and the winners were:
North Yorkshire County Council – Buy Local Business Directory
The seventh award of the evening was the COVID-19 Response Recognition Award. This award recognised the response and recovery to the unprecedented challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, it looked for evidence of making a difference to the lives of people adversely affected by COVID-19 pandemic and/or the extent to which old, established ways of working have been challenged to build back better. The award was presented by Helen McMahon, Lancaster City Council, and the winners were:
Lastly the most anticipated, award of the evening the Outstanding Contribution Award was announced. It recognises the outstanding contribution of the iNetwork member organisation that has done the most to promote learning and sharing of innovation and best practice. The award was presented by Steven Pleasant MBE, Chair of iNetwork and the winner was:
Greater Manchester Combined Authority
The evening closed with some remarks from Steven Pleasant MBE, who thanked all those that have supported iNetwork and to all the judges who have given up their time to help and support the Innovation Awards 2020.