
We are thrilled to announce the finalists for this year’s Innovation Awards. A huge congratulations to all the entrants who have been shortlisted!
This year, we received an impressive number of high-quality nominations, showcasing innovative projects and initiatives from local public services and their partners. The judging process began with the public vote, followed by the expert judges’ deliberation for each category. We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who voted and to our dedicated judges.
We are especially excited to highlight the finalists for the prestigious Outstanding Contribution Award. This award honours organisations that have made remarkable contributions to innovation, learning, and knowledge sharing within the iNetwork partnership. The panel’s decisions are based on each organisation’s engagement in our events, boards, forums, and other initiatives.
This year’s finalists for the Outstanding Contribution Award are –
– Greater Manchester Combined Authority
– Manchester City Council
– North Yorkshire Council
– St Helens Borough Council
– City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council
Transforming & Innovating Public Services (TIPS) Award
The TIPS Award recognises excellence in the transformation of public services and teams/organisations that have successfully implemented change for people and places. This year the following finalists have demonstrated evidence of improved outcomes through innovative citizen focused solutions in the areas of data, technology and/or culture change.
This year the finalists for this award are –
– North Yorkshire Council with Engine – Policy Buddy with Engine AI
– St Helens Borough Council – St Helens Approach to Tech Enabled Care
– Wigan Council – Wigan Council’s GenAI Journey
Connected Procurement & Commissioning (CPC) Award
The CPC Award recognises successes in public procurement and commissioning. This year the following finalists have showcased initiatives that have used innovative and collaborative procurement or commissioning practices to tackle social outcomes and deliver savings and efficiencies.
This year the finalists for this award are –
– Greater Manchester Combined Authority – GM One Network
– Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council – Match My Project
– STAR Procurement – PowerShift Revolutionising Utilities Procurement for the Future
– Merseyside Fire and Rescue – Training and Development Academy, Aintree
Effective Information Sharing & Security (EISS) Award
The EISS Award recognises excellence in Information Governance and/or Cyber Security. This year the shortlisted finalists have 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.
This year the finalists for this award are –
– City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council – Cyber Wargame and Workshop Partnership Working
– City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council – Cyber Yellow Pages
– Trafford Council – Supercharging Cybersecurity & Governance
– Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust – zED with zED to the MAx
iStandUK Award
The iStandUK Award recognises innovation and achievement in the effective use of data and information standards and was open to any public sector organisation. The finalists for this category have shown how their project has improved services to enable information transparency and/or to enable common understanding of a key issue.
This year the finalists for this award are –
– Community Action Network – Access to Community Support and Services (ACSS) Project
– Data to Insight – Standard Safeguarding Dataset (SSD)
– Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council, NAFN Data & Intelligence Services – National Register of Revocations, Refusals and Suspensions
Partner Excellence Award
The Partner Excellence Award recognises outstanding performance from their partner organisations and was open to any iNetwork member organisation. The shortlisted finalists have demonstrated innovation, collaboration, efficiency and going the extra mile in partnership working.
This year the finalists for this award are –
– Trafford Council & Community Computers – Trafford Tech4All Campaign
– City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council and Halo – Cyber Wargame and Workshop Partnership Working
– Wyre Moving More Board – Wyre Moving More
Best Practice Imitation Award
The Best Practice Imitation Award was launched this year and is designed to celebrate those who have drawn inspiration from the innovation of others and have applied and adapted this to fit their own organisational setting. The award looks to showcase projects that demonstrate a clear link to another organisation’s previous work, illustrating how they have effectively integrated best practices into their own operational framework while generating significant impact within their communities.
This year the finalists for this award are –
– St Helens Borough Council – St Helens Approach to Tech Enabled Care
– Chorley Council and South Ribble Borough Council – Reimagining Recruitment
– Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust – zED with zED to the Max
All the finalists have been invited to the Innovation Awards Dinner and Ceremony on Thursday 27th February, where the winners will be announced. Keep up to date with the latest from the awards by using the #iNetworkawards on the X and LinkedIn platforms.