The winners of the Manchester PA Awards were revealed on Thursday 1st November in a ceremony held at Emirates Old Trafford, celebrating and rewarding the incredible talent of PAs, EAs and VAs across the region.
The not-for-profit awards, organised by the Manchester PA Network and event partner Make Events, were hosted by television and radio presenter, Gethin Jones, and saw more than 720 professionals from across the country come together to celebrate the best of the best in business support roles.
Judged by industry experts with representatives from the likes of the Manchester PA Network, EPAA and UKFast, the winners chosen exceeded expectations and have exemplified hard work, dedication and passion within their roles.
Those picking up accolades included Jo Wilson, from Hall Brown Family Law, while Melanie Sheehy and Amanda Hargreaves were recognised for their services to the city’s PA industry through the Manchester PA Network.
Co-founder of the Manchester PA Network, Melanie Sheehy, said: “Once again we were overwhelmed by the wealth of talent nominated for the awards, which is evidence of all the hard work EAs, VAs and PAs are putting in to support businesses across the region.
“Last night’s awards helped to recognise all of the great achievements and we want to say a big thank you to everyone that came along to join in the celebrations. Congratulations to all those that were shortlisted and particularly those that picked up an award on the night.”
Lawrence Jones, chief executive officer at headline sponsor UKFast, said: “PAs and EAs play an incredibly important role in any business and are often the unsung heroes, so it’s fantastic to be able to pay tribute to them and the work they do. It’s a real honour to help celebrate their success and shine a light on the leading talent through the awards”.
Organisers raised £5,300 at the event which will go towards the Christie fund and Manchester PA Network’s target to raise £200K for the charity by 2020.
For the first time the awards also recognised those working outside of Manchester with the introduction of the External PA Network Award which was picked up by the Birmingham PA Forum.
The full list of winners for the 2018 Manchester PA Awards is:
- Best Event – Fiona Hardman, Guenther Bakeries UK Ltd
- Brand Ambassador – Jemma Carr, Victorian Chophouse Company
- Business Leader of the Year – Doug Hann, Indigo Planning
- External PA Network – Birmingham PA Forum
- Fundraiser of the Year – Jo Booth, Stocks 2015 Limited
- Internal PA Network – Arup UKIMEA Secretarial Network
- Leader of the Year – Catherine Hunt, PwC
- Lifetime Achievement – Stella Corbett, Brother UK Limited
- Rising Star – Lawrence Adlum, KPMG
- Social Media Champion – Sam Johnson, SES Engineering
- Team of the Year – Chiesi Support Services Team
- Virtual Assistant – Jules Aston, Aston Assists
- UKFast Excellence – Sarah Muench, Sky
- Above and Beyond – Martine Tempest-Mitchell, Timpson/The Christie
- Special Recognition Award for Company Culture – Addleshaw Goddard
- Services to the Manchester PA Industry – Melanie Sheehy and Amanda Hargreaves, Manchester PA Network
- Manchester PA of the Year – Jo Wilson, Hall Brown Family Law
Holly Moore, managing director of Make Events, said: ‘Make Events would never miss an opportunity to work with the Manchester PA Awards and this year we went all out to make this the best awards that Manchester has ever seen’.
