Oxfordshire Employee of the Year Awards

One of the strengths of BYHP is the small, dedicated team, all of whom want the very best for the Young People who turn to BYHP for support and help.
 
Whilst it would have been wonderful to publicly recognise each of these team members, we decided to nominate Aida Walsh for the Plus One Personnel Oxfordshire Employee of the Year Award and we were thrilled to hear that she had been put forward as one of the five finalists for the prestigious award.
 
On Thursday 28th January representatives from companies and charities based right across the county came together to celebrate the achievements of companies, apprentices, teams, employers and employees at a glittering event at the Oxford Belfry, hosted by BYHP’s very own Trustee and Treasurer, the inimitable Mr Simon Smith.
 
Following an initial period of time networking and catching up with friends and colleagues over a glass of fizz, a wonderful spread of food and posing for a few photos, the assembled attendees made their way into the room for the main event, 6 awards celebrating wonderful achievements.

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The awards for Apprentice of the Year, Team of the Year, Employer of the Year, Commitment to Employment and Charity Fundraiser of the Year were contested and results announced http://www.plusonepersonnel.co.uk/employee-awards/2016oxfordshirewinners/ and we waited for the final award of the event, the one giving its name to the whole event, the Plus One Personnel Oxfordshire Employee of the Year award.
 
As the primary award in the competition, there had been a large number of submissions and so we were so proud of Aida for making the final five and we had hopes that this year she would go one step further than the beaten finalist position that she achieved in 2015, especially as the award was sponsored by one of BYHP’s supporters, Bibby Financial Services.

​The competition was tough, with Aida up for the award against Chris Trim of Jamie Briggs Removals, Tarryn Skene from Hedges Law. WRAP UK’s Sarah Clayton and Jamie Hamilton from Aspire Oxford.
 
The stories of achievement were fascinating and the nomination which convinced the judges of the nominee’s accomplishments was a very strong and worthy one, detailing the amazing journey made by Jamie Hamilton from Aspire Oxford, who support people with a background of homelessness, substance misuse or offending histories into employment. 
 
So, whilst we were disappointed for Aida as we felt her amazing work with young people on the Unlocking Potential programme made her a deserving potential winner, we were delighted that Jamie won, as his work and that of Aspire aligns with that which BYHP does and we felt it was important that the sector had been recognised, particularly at this very challenging time for charities in Oxfordshire and across the country. http://www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/14271316.Community_champion_presented_with_award_for_going_the_extra_mile/
 
In addition to that Aspire is hopefully going to be a partner organisation of BYHP in the near future and we are already working together.
 
So, many congratulations to Aida and to all of the other nominees and winners of the awards – and a big thank you to Plus One Personnel for hosting such a wonderful evening, celebrating the best of Oxfordshire business.

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See the Awards Night video made by friend of BYHP Ben Atkinson of ATS Films​http://www.plusonepersonnel.co.uk/employee-awards/2016oxfordshirewinners/