Have you met ‘The Covid Employability Challenge’ in 2021?

#ERSAAwards21 – If ever there was a year to shout about your hard work and achievements, this is it! The countdown is on… join us in celebrating your success with the ERSA Awards 2021

Sponsored by Cognisoft and Clarion Futures, the awards are your opportunity to hail a remarkable year and enjoy the recognition of your accomplishments.  

Elizabeth Taylor, ERSA CEO says:

“Our theme this year is ‘The Covid Employability Challenge’ and our mission is to find individuals and teams who went above and beyond to deliver services to disadvantaged groups during the pandemic. We’re looking for entries from organisations of all sizes and our submission process is simple and achievable.

“You don’t even need to be an ERSA member; we recognise any organisation involved in the sector. Submitting an entry on behalf of a partner organisation is also a great way to recognise collaborative working and a job well done. Almost half of last year’s ERSA winners were nominated by another organisation.

“After this year, we are all winners, and with more work to do, why not give your team a boost and enter.”

We understand you’re busy, so we’ve simplified our categories and entry requirements to ensure we can choose from the very best. There’s a focus on individual, team and partnership achievements this year and we will be encouraging video submissions to visualise and support your entries. 

The award categories

• Frontline Adviser of the Year
  Employment advisers and job coaches who have demonstrated exceptional commitment in a frontline role
• Frontline Manager of the Year
  Frontline managers or team leaders who has demonstrated exceptional commitment to leading their frontline team to excellent performance and customer achievements
• Employer of the Year
  Employers showing exceptional commitment by partnering with providers in their area, supporting disadvantaged and long-term unemployed jobseekers
• Significant Achiever of the Year
  Organisations delivering employability programmes can nominate exceptional jobseekers and learners they support
• Team of the Year – Disability and health
  Frontline teams providing disability and wellbeing services, including mental health support
• Team of the Year – Hardest hit
  Frontline teams supporting individuals and communities hardest hit by the pandemic, including low-paid workers, young people NEET, diverse communities, experience of the justice system, women, learning disabilities and other disadvantaged groups
• Team of the Year – Innovation
  Teams helping us remotely connect: Roll out of IT equipment to participants, digital accessibility, behind the scenes innovation to change ways of working through the pandemic
• Team of the Year – Crisis management
  Frontline teams providing essential/emergency pandemic support: housing, food, benefits etc
• Team of the Year – Hidden heroes
  Working behind the scenes to enable services: IT/digital services, service design, research and evidence
• Community Partnership of the Year
  Organisations working together to form partnerships that support local communities already furthest from the labour market, and have been hit hardest by the pandemic
• Outstanding Contribution to the Sector
  A truly inspiring individual who will be nationally recognised as a champion and ambassador for the sector

The awards timeline

Friday 18 June                awards open

Friday 1 September          awards close
Friday 1 October               shortlist announced
Thursday 25 November    awards announced

Additional information and support

Judged by an independent panel of industry experts, the ERSA Awards are an official commendation of exceptional best practice. They are also an opportunity to demonstrate the integrity of your services and business principles, plus they are a real draw for new employees, supplier partners and funders.

The presentation of the winners will be announced via a live broadcast event in front of ministers and sector stakeholders. 

We’ll be adding to our handy toolkit as the Awards progress here.

The Awards are a fantastic springboard for raising your organisation’s profile whether you’re shortlisted or a winner.

Raise your profile by sponsoring an award category!

If you are interested in sponsoring an award category this year, get in touch with Laura Benfield, Head of Membership. 

Watch out for further information and updates on our sponsors, the award criteria, the independent judging panel and awards compère! 

Ways to support this year’s awards!

• Save the dates
• Sponsor an award category
• Encourage your colleagues, partners and networks to enter
• Shout about the awards across social media using our hashtag #ERSAAwards21
• Plan your submission

The ERSA Awards 2021 will open for entries on Friday 18 June via https://ersa.org.uk/ersaawards.