Whitbread scoop trio of awards in dominating night
Hospitality company Whitbread, owners of Premier Inn, recently took home three awards at the Inclusion In awards.
The awards ceremony was hosted on the Tuesday, October 14 and was powered by Women in Hospitality, Travel and Leisure (WiHTL) and Diversity in retail, splitting the awards night into two sections, Hospitality and Retail. Whitbread’s tally of three awards was the highest in the hospitality, travel and leisure sector (HTL), and was only matched by one other retail company across all companies and awards.
The annual awards, launched in 2024, set out to recognise and reward exceptional efforts towards inclusion across the HTL and Retail sectors. The event rewards a mixture of whole organisations, teams and individuals. Whitbread were recognised three times on the night, celebrating the massive effort and commitment the company has shown towards making the organisation the most inclusive it can be.
The trio of awards were very well deserved and were awarded as follows:
Most impactful social mobility initiative in HTL and Retail: Barnardo’s partnership for care experienced young people – This initiative focuses on a pre-employment programme for children just coming out of care, working on gaining them employment within the organisation.
Most transformative inclusion initiative in HTL: The Thrive Programme – This programme focuses on training students with special educational needs to work and operate in a hospitality and housekeeping environment, helping a large number of these students into paid roles within Whitbread.
Inclusion hero in HTL: Tracey Bishop – Tracey, who works as a Regional Operations Manager (ROM) for Whitbread, won this award for her incredibly committed work on the aforementioned Thrive programme. She has been a leading figure in partnerships between colleges and development of the programme since the very start of the programme.
Katie Mellor, Talent, Development and Inclusion Director at Whitbread said: “It’s an incredible honour for Whitbread to be recognised with these awards for creating inclusive workplaces where everyone can thrive and reach their full potential. We’re passionate about ensuring there are no barriers to entry and no limits to ambition, and these awards reflect the progress we’ve made together. Looking ahead, we’re excited to build on this momentum and make an even greater impact.”
These awards really do display how much Whitbread are a force for good in the local and national community. Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) is a commitment under Whitbread’s Force for Good strategy and the business is committed to being for everyone, championing inclusivity across the organisation and improving diversity.
For more information on Whitbread please see: https://www.whitbread.co.uk/
For more information on the awards and to see all winners please visit: https://inclusioninawards.com/2025/en/page/home
ENDS
