Nominations

Put a business
forward

It takes a minute. All it needs is the name of a local business worth shouting about and a sentence about why. Nobody pays to be nominated.

Status:Nominations open

First deadline 22 September 2026

Whose business are you nominating

Question one

Whose business is it

Both are welcome and both count the same. It only tells us whether the details at the bottom are yours or somebody else's.

Question two

Which award

Where the business trades. We run one programme in each region, once a year.

Pick the region first. If you are not sure which award fits best, choose the closest one and we can move it.

Question three

The business

So we know which branch you mean.

Optional. You can enter an address like example.co.uk or www.example.co.uk.

This is the part that counts. A sentence about what they actually did is worth more than a paragraph of praise.

Question four

You

If this is your own business we need a way to reach you, so we can send the invitation to accept your place. If you are putting somebody else forward, these are optional and only used if we need to check a detail. We never show them publicly.

Needed if this is your own business.

Needed if this is your own business. It is where the invitation goes.

We will not contact the business until somebody has checked the details.

After you send it

What happens
next

A nomination is the start of a conversation, not the end of one. Here is the whole of it.

  1. Somebody
    reads it

    A person checks the details and matches the business to the one we already hold, so a company nominated five times is still one entry.

  2. The business
    accepts

    We invite them, and they say yes themselves. Nothing appears on the site until they have, and nobody is listed without knowing.

  3. Their community
    votes

    When voting opens, the people who actually walk through the door decide. One verified vote each, and nothing about it can be bought.

Still not sure
which award?

Pick the closest one. Moving a nomination to a better-fitting award is a minute of somebody's time, and it happens before anything is published.

How it works

Winners

Where a nomination
can end up

Every one of these started with somebody putting a business forward, exactly like this. Then their community voted.

Read more of these

In their own words

What it felt like, from the people it happened to

We ask every winner the same question after the result: how did you feel when you found out? These are their answers.

  • WE COULDN'T BELEIVE IT, WE WERE JUMPING UP AND DOWN AND CHEERING .
    Abbey ElectricalYorkshire 2026
  • Disbelief that our small store had achieved something so grand and immensely proud.
    Bay GamesNorth East 2026
  • We were absolutley thrilled and genuinely very proud. There is something particularly special about being recognised for a business that has been built over 30 years through the hard work and dedication of our famiky and our teams. It feels like recognition not just for Bell and Sons, but for everyone who has played a part in our journey.
    Bell & Sons RemovalsEast Midlands 2026
  • I honestly couldn’t believe it. I’m so lucky to have the most amazing support from my clients, and I really shouldn’t have doubted for a second that they would get behind me and take the time to vote. I’m incredibly grateful and genuinely touched by all the support I’ve received.
    Amy Thor PhotographyNorth East 2026
  • I burst into tears, I think I'm still in shock. This means the absolute world to us all. We can't thank the people who voted for us enough
    Chesterfield Animal RescueEast Midlands 2026
  • Pure shock. As a small vintage shop in a market, awards weren’t something that ever crossed our minds. You just turn up every day and do your best. Finding out we’d won made us feel genuinely, deeply grateful. For our customers, for the people around us, for all of it.
    ANALOGNorth East 2026
  • WE COULDN'T BELEIVE IT, WE WERE JUMPING UP AND DOWN AND CHEERING .
    Abbey ElectricalYorkshire 2026
  • Disbelief that our small store had achieved something so grand and immensely proud.
    Bay GamesNorth East 2026
  • We were absolutley thrilled and genuinely very proud. There is something particularly special about being recognised for a business that has been built over 30 years through the hard work and dedication of our famiky and our teams. It feels like recognition not just for Bell and Sons, but for everyone who has played a part in our journey.
    Bell & Sons RemovalsEast Midlands 2026
  • I honestly couldn’t believe it. I’m so lucky to have the most amazing support from my clients, and I really shouldn’t have doubted for a second that they would get behind me and take the time to vote. I’m incredibly grateful and genuinely touched by all the support I’ve received.
    Amy Thor PhotographyNorth East 2026
  • I burst into tears, I think I'm still in shock. This means the absolute world to us all. We can't thank the people who voted for us enough
    Chesterfield Animal RescueEast Midlands 2026
  • Pure shock. As a small vintage shop in a market, awards weren’t something that ever crossed our minds. You just turn up every day and do your best. Finding out we’d won made us feel genuinely, deeply grateful. For our customers, for the people around us, for all of it.
    ANALOGNorth East 2026
  • We're over the moon to have won not just locally but in the whole county! In particular during the challenging times we mentioned previously. It is great to know that we're providing a service we can continue to be proud of and that all the hard work is recognised.
    Abbeydale Cottage NurseryYorkshire 2026
  • We were absolutely blown away. We have had amazing support from the moment we opened and we have had amazing feedback about how superior our products are to alot of other companies in the industry and given we are a small gamily run business this means so much to us as this shop literally put food on our table.
    Biltong BuddyCumbria 2026
  • I was absolutely over the moon! We were actually on holiday when I found out, so my husband and daughter took me out for a lovely celebratory meal. It was such a special moment to be able to celebrate together, and made the achievement feel even more memorable.
    Amanda Campbell InteriorsEast Midlands 2026
  • Total shock, followed by a lot of shouting and a celebratory sandwich (obviously). It felt surreal.
    BreadwinNorth East 2026
  • We were absolutely delighted and very proud to receive this recognition. It’s a wonderful acknowledgment of the team’s hard work and attention to detail.
    Auckland Palace ShopNorth East 2026
  • The whole team were so proud of what we have all achieved. Hard work and dedication by each and every member was rewarded in that moment.
    Academy TheatreYorkshire 2026
  • We're over the moon to have won not just locally but in the whole county! In particular during the challenging times we mentioned previously. It is great to know that we're providing a service we can continue to be proud of and that all the hard work is recognised.
    Abbeydale Cottage NurseryYorkshire 2026
  • We were absolutely blown away. We have had amazing support from the moment we opened and we have had amazing feedback about how superior our products are to alot of other companies in the industry and given we are a small gamily run business this means so much to us as this shop literally put food on our table.
    Biltong BuddyCumbria 2026
  • I was absolutely over the moon! We were actually on holiday when I found out, so my husband and daughter took me out for a lovely celebratory meal. It was such a special moment to be able to celebrate together, and made the achievement feel even more memorable.
    Amanda Campbell InteriorsEast Midlands 2026
  • Total shock, followed by a lot of shouting and a celebratory sandwich (obviously). It felt surreal.
    BreadwinNorth East 2026
  • We were absolutely delighted and very proud to receive this recognition. It’s a wonderful acknowledgment of the team’s hard work and attention to detail.
    Auckland Palace ShopNorth East 2026
  • The whole team were so proud of what we have all achieved. Hard work and dedication by each and every member was rewarded in that moment.
    Academy TheatreYorkshire 2026