Who can be entered?
This Award is open to individual women only. Please note Winners of any category are excluded from nominations for any Women in Defence UK Awards for two years.
What will the judges be looking for?
The judges will be looking for examples of where an individual has had an extraordinarily positive influence or impact on other individuals – this could be over a long period of time or a specific element of support. The impact of that influence could take many forms, for example: a change in behaviour, increased ambition or motivation, achievement of potential or the courage to call out wrong-doing. The key line is in the title - ‘Inspirational’, for it is far more challenging to inspire others than to be inspired, which is what this Award aims to recognise. Therefore, the judges will expect to see evidence of how the nominee has acted as a role model.
See also
The Inspirational Award shares similarities with the Outstanding Contribution Award as both categories relate to individuals who have exceeded all expectations. The key element of the Inspirational Award is the role model aspect – inspiring others; the key element of the Outstanding Contribution Award is an exceptional contribution to the output or mission of their organisation. For early career professionals, also consider the Emerging Talent Award which is for women who consistently demonstrate exceptionally high performance in their role.
Finalists from earlier years
Last year’s Finalists were from the Army, GCHQ and L3 Harris. The Winner was recognised for her incredible impact in Defence Medical Services championing the cause of women within the UK armed forces and the wider world. The Winner from this category also went on to win Woman of the Year 2024. The other Finalists were nominated for: their work strengthening and developing GCHQ’s Mathematics and Crypt Security community by improving the experience of mathematicians and increasing technical health; and being a founding member of the L3 Harris Women Who Strive for Empowering, Enhancing and Encouraging Other Women (WE3) Employee Resource Group in the UK.
How do I nominate?
Nominating someone is simple, just go to the Women in Defence UK 2025 Awards Nominations Proforma, but we advise that you read this first!
To nominate, follow these easy steps:
- Provide the contact details of the woman you are nominating, please note the need to confirm that you have her agreement to share her details.
- Tell us briefly why you think she deserves to be nominated (the citation part of the nomination form).
- Provide your own contact details.
The citation part of the nomination form is broken down into three elements:
- An overview of why you are nominating this woman (maximum of 200 words).
- An explanation of how she has demonstrated the criteria for this Award category (maximum of 200 words).
- Examples of the results she has achieved as supporting evidence (maximum of 200 words).
Please note
The citation must reflect a true and accurate account of the attributes, achievements and impact of the actions of the individual. Women in Defence UK requires all nominators to verify that the citations are factually correct.
AI can be used to create all or part of the citation. If used, it is the nominator’s personal responsibility to ensure that all company or organisational security, privacy and information management protocols have been followed. We ask for transparency if any AI tool has been used – you will see a question as part of the nomination procedure.
You should only include information that is up to the classification of ‘Official’. Information that is ‘Official Sensitive’ or higher must not be included.
A nomination using essentially the same narrative or evidence should not be entered in more than one Award by a single nominator. A nominee may be entered more than once in one or more categories by different nominators, providing the narrative in the citation does not duplicate, or near word for word resemble, the citations of other nominators.
Entries will not be accepted from the partner, spouse or other close family member of a nominee.
There is a word limit of 200 words per section. Even if the form allows you to enter more, the citation sent for judging will be shortened if it exceeds this limit, which could mean that it ends mid-sentence.
Hints and Tips
The judges refer to the category criteria when judging submissions. They look to see how the activity/behaviour/impact meets the criteria for each category. So put yourself in the judges’ shoes. They read lots of citations so capture their attention early, be concise and provide context. It may be obvious to you why an achievement is so worthy of recognition, but our judges may not have the same background or experience so please explain the significance.
Providing context to the citation (i.e. sphere of work, day to day tasks, key challenges, etc.), and tangible evidence of the outcome or effect that this had on others will strengthen the nomination hugely. Our judges may not be familiar with all parts of the defence enterprise so avoid, or at the very least explain, acronyms.