The Inspiring Women Awards comes of age in 2010 after 18 years of celebrating amazing female achievement. To mark the anniversary, its founder Jacqueline Hughes Lundy has launched a foundation to honour the region’s younger women.
The Award, which is open to 16-25-year-olds will inspire the next generation and the Foundation make these annual bursaries to the recipients of the Award. To girls and young women who have beaten the odds to achieve their dream; been inspirational to others; set up businesses or are overcoming obstacles to pursue their career. The first bursary of £1,000 will be awarded for training, education or business purposes.
The Inspiring Women Awards, in association with Britannia and the Co-operative Bank, both part of The Co-operative Financial Services Group, has not only recognised the achievements of women in the North West but has also raised thousands of pounds for local charities. It is now raising funds through The Inspiring Young Women Foundation to continue with this work.
The first bursary will be awarded at The Inspiring Women Awards, May 14, 2010. Nominations for this award will open on November 9, 2009.
To launch this new Award and The Inspiring Young Women Foundation, an invited group of sponsors, including Business Link NW and Deloitte, corporate supporters, past Inspiring Women Award winners and inspiring young women networked over drinks and canapés at The Abode Hotel, Manchester.
Jacqueline Hughes-Lundy, founder and organiser of the awards, introduced the aims of the foundation and one of its ambassadors, Kanika Selvan, who will be helping to judge the award.
Kanika has volunteered in a number of roles from an early age - acting as a peer mentor at her secondary school (Whalley Kanika Selvan, Jacqueline Hughes Lundy and
Elsia Menendez
Range High Schools for Girls), becoming a Millenium Volunteer and volunteering at the Manchester Jazz Festival, planting trees and helping out at a playscheme for disabled children. As part of a team of Black and
Minority Ethnic girls she worked on a European Union-funded project to develop a website for BME young women and attended an international exchange in Bosnia.
She worked part time from the age of 16, whilst at Xaverian Sixth Form College gaining three A Levels, and saved enough money to travel to India, where she volunteered for three months at a school for slum children in Bangalore. She then spent a further four months volunteering at an orphanage in Chennai, sometimes having sole responsibility for caring for 80 children.
On returning to Manchester, Kanika took up her part-time work at the Body Shop where she became Values Lead for her region arranging volunteering opportunities for staff and encouraging them to participate. In the summer of this year this 20-year-old, was promoted to an Assistant Manager post and has recently won the Anita Roddick Award for her values work
The first recipient of the Bursary is the Inspiring Young Woman Award winner - Fajer Rabia from Inspired Sisters.
Jacqueline Hughes-Lundy
Founder
The Inspiring Young Women Foundation is administered by The Charity Service. Charity number: 1011293
