‘Shocked. Honoured. Overjoyed.’: Meet the Womenin Wales Awards Class of 2026

Daniel Bevan - Editor

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The inaugural Womenin Wales Awards has been hailed as a huge success as more than 250 guests gathered to champion the Welsh women making a difference on a daily basis.

Taking home the top prizes were Pippa Prichard of recycling, construction and demolition firm Prichard’s and former Wales international Jess Fishlock, picking up Businesswoman and Sportswoman of the Year respectively.

The latter was also the first to be crowned Woman of the Year, an accolade handed to the winner of winners.

Held at the Marriott in Cardiff, the awards are a celebration of the women who make extraordinary contributions to the Welsh sport and business landscapes and were sold out within days of the finalists being announced.

The night was supported by a long list of brilliant businesses and institutions, including headline sponsor Hello Starling.

The categories were independently judged by a panel who themselves were worthy of awards and had the unfortunate task of whittling down the shortlist to a small number of finalists and picking winners at the judging day, hosted by the Park Plaza in Cardiff.

The panel was made up of Carol Hall, Co-Investment Network Manager at the Development Bank of Wales, Emma Waddingham, Editor and Founder of Legal News Wales, Princess Onyeanusi, Founder and Chief Executive of Safe Online Space Cymru, Ria Burrage-Male, a former international athlete, Sarah Jones, CEO of FinTech Wales, as well as James Robinson, Managing Director of Hello Starling.

After months of planning, the stage was set

The evening kicked off with a spellbinding performance by Sophie Evans and Steffan Hughes of Broadway Brunch, bringing their patented charm and humour to start proceedings.

Masterfully taking on hosting duties was award-winning radio DJ, and one of the faces of Sky Sports Darts, Polly James.

The trophies themselves were created by Dragon Signs and the stage decor, as well as the photo boards, were created by Colour Studios, all of which was designed by The Dragon Group’s in-house creative team.

The first award of the night was Contribution to Charity, sponsored by Bevan Buckland, which went to Chloe Smith of Big Moose.

The mental health charity provides fast and effective therapy within 24 hours of making contact and gets them in front of a therapist within seven days.

The judges were particularly impressed with the sheer amount of fundraising challenges Chloe had undertaken including becoming the youngest Welsh woman ever to climb Mount Kilimanjaro at just 15, raising £15,000 for charity in the process.

Her motivational speaking work for local businesswomen, while always championing good mental health, was also noted by the judges.

For Chloe, the award was even more special, having had a kidney transplant less than six months ago.

She said: “I’m really honoured. There’s an amazing atmosphere [in the room]. Lots of people and lots of lovely women.”

Cymru’s double brace

The big winners on the night were Cymru’s female footballers, scooping four awards in all.

Media Champion, sponsored by Hello Starling, was awarded to Ffion Morgan, who was praised for giving fans a behind-the-scenes look at what being an international footballer is really like.

Ffion said: “Diolch for this award. Thank you to my sister for making me start [playing football] in the first place and all the followers and people who have come across and liked any of my content in the last couple of years.

“To share Wales and inspire young people along the way has been fantastic. I hope to continue sharing the Welsh language and sharing our culture on social media and across the world. Diolch yn fawr.”

Former Cymru player Jess Fishlock was the winner of Sportswoman of the Year, sponsored by Nathaniel Cars, and Woman of the Year, sponsored by Glamorgan Cricket, at the ceremony.

The judges praised Fishlock for the high standards demonstrated throughout her career and the legacy she has created for sport in Wales.

She said: “I’m super honoured to win Sportswoman of the Year, especially after the last year of my international career. It’s always nice to win awards and to do it off the back of such a great year is always nice.

“My family have been the backbone of my career from day one. My teammates, former teammates now — without them we wouldn’t have been able to create or achieve what we have done collectively.”

On receiving the award for Woman of the Year, she added: “I’m used to having ‘sports’ added to the awards so it’s a little strange to win something else.

“Thank you very much for my Woman of the Year award, it’s a huge honour and something that I will cherish deeply.”

Cymru were also awarded the Team of the Year prize for qualifying for their first ever major tournament, the EUROs, inspiring a nation in the process.

Cymru captain, Angharad James, said: “I wanted to say a massive diolch on behalf of the team. It’s truly an honour to pick up the Team of the Year award tonight.

“For us it was a special summer. To represent Cymru on the biggest stage at the EUROs in Switzerland was a dream come true, and a very proud moment for all of us.”

Business’ big winners

Taking home the gong for Businesswoman of the Year, sponsored by Cardiff Business School, was Pippa Prichard, Director of Prichard’s.

The judges were incredibly impressed by the journey Prichard’s has been on over the last three decades, with Pippa steering the ship in a very male-dominated environment.

Founded in 1995 with just a tractor and trailer, Prichard’s now employs over 400 people and operates in the recycling, demolition and construction industries.

Speaking shortly after coming off stage, Pippa said: “I’m incredibly honoured to win this award. To be in a room with such power, with all those women from business and sport, I’m over the moon.

“The room is electric. It’s so good to be around all these women. It’s empowering.”

Walking away with the Green Champion award, sponsored by Dragon Signs, was Lisa Hicks, founder of Snoap.

The judges were impressed with Lisa’s innovative idea of a hybrid soap dispenser designed to work with specialised solid soap bars which turn into a powder, as well as the business’ growth following her appearance on Dragons’ Den.

Lisa said: “[I’m] really overwhelmed. I didn’t expect it at all. We are a solid soap and shampoo dispensing system, first of its kind and totally patented.

“What’s really amazing is that we’ve stopped 10 tonnes of plastic polluting the planet by people switching to Snoap.

“I’ve been in Cardiff all day and come out tonight to support women in business. To come away with a win is just amazing. I’m totally overjoyed.”

The Young Businesswoman of the Year, sponsored by Prichard’s, was given to Hair Syrup founder Lucie MacLeod, while Rising Leader, sponsored by Swansea University, went to Gemma Barnett, Business Development Manager at Redkite Solicitors.

The judges commended Gemma’s time at Blake Morgan, which led to her joining the leadership team at Redkite Solicitors, as well as co-founding She Who UK.

Gemma said: “I’m a bit shocked, to be honest. I was honoured just to be shortlisted. I was put forward by people within the business community, within my network, which just meant so much to me.

“I’m immensely proud to win. I didn’t expect it at all. For me, the category is really important. I think there needs to be more female senior leaders.

“I think the fact that this award provides a platform to elevate women’s profile and showcase the brilliant work that they do is fantastic.

“I’m proud to fly the flag for business professionals within the legal sector.”

‘We go together or not at all’

The Diversity and Inclusion Champion, sponsored by FOR Cardiff, was awarded to founder of Mastering Diversity, Bernie Davies.

The judges said Bernie lives and breathes diversity and her impressive work over so many years has touched the lives of many, making an immeasurable difference.

Bernie said: “I’m not usually at a loss for words but I honestly am tonight. I am blown away.

“I couldn’t do this without the partners, network and ecosystem [around me] because everything that I do is for the service users.

“It’s all about everybody having access to what is there for us. I am overjoyed. I am grateful.

“I am literally coming [to the awards] from the United Nations in New York, the seventh session for the Commission for the Status of Women.

“I was able to take a small delegation from Wales because we go together or not at all.

“You can’t do what I do and be single-minded. It has to be about the collective.”

Bernie’s wisdom of “we go together or not at all” will resonate with many, and those who were able to be in attendance will agree that the energy was palpable.

Hundreds of women and allies, all in the same room, shouting about the women who make the impossible possible and the hard look easy every day, often with many more barriers in their way.