REVEALED: Winners of 2022’s Queer Student Awards

The winners of this year’s Queer Student Awards (QSA) were revealed at a hybrid ceremony held in Manchester during Pride Month, hosted by The Branding Man.

Judged by a panel of educators, employers, queer influencers and recruitment experts, the 2022 Queer Student Awards, provide a safe and inclusive space for schools, colleges, universities, employers and young LGBTQ+ people to proudly celebrate the stories that lie behind the rainbow.

Grace Armstrong, Vice President Welfare at Northumbria Students Union scooped the ‘Queer of the Year’ award. Armstrong also won the ‘Activist of the Year’. Their work and commitment towards inclusive activism focused on supporting and increasing the visibility of LGBTQ+ students on campus at Northumbria University. Armstrong’s activism and incredible achievements impressed the judges. This included introducing sustainable pronoun badges; running a period poverty campaign; creating a reading section in the library for students; and fighting for funding for the local community and national LGBTQ+ charities.

“Being ‘Queer of the Year’ means the world to me. I have never thought it necessary to be commended for the things I have done as I believe I am just doing my job and what I believe is right. I think even being shortlisted and considered as ‘Queer of the Year’ is an absolute honour; and I hope a lot of people realise that even the little things they do can change someone’s life and give them visibility they never knew they could have”, shared Grace Armstrong.

SHINING EXAMPLE OF ACTIVISM

“The awards shine light on the achievements of students, apprentices, interns, graduates, and freelancers who identify with the LGBTQ+ community and recognise the individuals and organisations who proactively support them. When it comes to activism it can be easy to say you are an activist. When judging all the young LGBTQ+ people category winners as a group, the judges felt unanimously that Grace had shown commitment to inclusive activism in every way one can, and that they were a shining example to those around them,” stated QSA founder Steve Keith.

2022 QSA WINNERS

This year’s winners include:

• Queer of the Year: Grace Armstrong, Northumbria Student Union
• School/College of the Year (sponsored by Royal Navy): William Farr CofE School
• Campaign of the Year (sponsored by Clifford Chance): NSU Pride Zone, Northumbria Student Union
• Community Group of the Year (sponsored by Enterprise): Warwick Professional LGBTUA+ & Allies Network (PLAN), University of Warwick
• University Network of the Year (sponsored by Gradconsult): Rainbow Network, University of Birmingham
• Employee Network of the Year (sponsored by Not Going to Uni): Arcus, Clifford Chance
• Ally of the Year (sponsored by ICAEW): Sophia Daly, Dudley College
• Role Model of the Year – Young Person (sponsored by AstraZeneca): Georgina Wrigg, Burgess Hill Girls
• Role Model of the Year –  Employer (sponsored by AstraZeneca): Hanita Gill, Johnson Matthey
• Role Model of the Year – Education (sponsored by AstraZeneca): Chris Mattley, William Farr CofE School
• Activist of the Year (sponsored by Clyde & Co): Grace Armstrong, Northumbria Student Union
• Freelancer of the Year (archtype): Elliot Welsh, Revolutionary Magazine
• Graduate of the Year (sponsored by University of West London): Laura Wells, Johnson Matthey
• Rising Star of the Year (sponsored by uptree): Tabitha Rose-Hughes, Emmerson & Ward Ltd

2022 QSA HIGHLY COMMENDED

This year’s highly commended awards include:

• University Network of the Year (sponsored by gradconsult): Northumbria LGBTQ* Staff Network, Northumbria University
• Role Model of the Year – Young Person (sponsored by AstraZeneca): Harry Morgan, University of Essex

Writer, speaker, content creator and author Ben Pechey, helped to host the event. Trans In The City founder Bobbi Pickard delivered a moving keynote; and South Asian drag queen powerhouses Lady Bushra and Asifa Lahore provided the evening’s entertainment. Category sponsors for 2022 include Not Going To Uni, ICAEW, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, AstraZeneca, gradconsult, uptree, archtype, University of West London, Royal Navy, Clifford Chance and Clyde & Co. Additionally, QSA will donate 10% of profits from the event to LGBTQ+ inclusion charity, Diversity Role Models.

You can check out all the QSA finalists for this year here.