Revealed: 2025’s Disability Smart Awards Winners

The Business Disability Forum unveiled this year’s Disability Smart Awards winners at an awards ceremony yesterday (29 April), in London.

Now in its 11th year, the Disability Smart Awards celebrate inclusive practice and innovation across all sectors and organisation sizes. These awards recognise both organisations and individuals working to remove barriers and create a more inclusive world for disabled people. They also aim to drive better understanding of disability inclusion in business and share practical learnings from both finalists and winners.

“Congratulations to all this year’s Disability Smart Award winners and finalists. 2025 is a landmark year, marking 30 years since the Disability Discrimination Act and 15 years since the Equality Act came into force. Although we have a long way to go to become a truly inclusive global society, our Disability Smart Award winners and finalists show how innovation around disability inclusion can drive positive change for everyone,” said Diane Lightfoot, CEO of Business Disability Forum. “In our experience, a fear of getting it wrong is often one of the biggest barriers that has to be overcome. But our winner stories demonstrate what can be achieved when organisations make disability inclusion a priority on their agenda.”

2025’S DISABILITY SMART AWARD WINNERS

Thirteen individuals and organisations received awards this year across a range of categories. They include:

Disability Smart Leader Award

Winner: Georgina Colman, Founder and CEO of Purpl Discounts, for creating the UK’s first discount site specifically for disabled people, aimed at improving their lives and finances.

Disability Smart Diversity and Inclusion Professional Award

Winner: Neil Eustice, Digital Accessibility Manager, KPMG UK, for a lifelong commitment to disability inclusion through roles at KPMG, the IAAP, and the Business Disability Forum Technology Taskforce.

Disability Smart Accessible Built Environment Award

Winner: Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), for transforming their London headquarters to meet the new PAS 6463 national accessibility standard, making it a model for inclusive design.

Disability Smart Technology Award

Winner: Unilever, for developing accessible packaging that uses a scannable QR code and new technology to audibly communicate on-pack information, accessible from a distance.

Disability Smart Procurement Award

Winner: Arts Council England, for reshaping how the creative and cultural sectors engage with deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent people by removing systemic barriers.

Disability Smart Inclusive Workplace Experience Award (250+ employees)

Winner: Ofgem, for the ‘Optimal Working Passport’, a pioneering digital workplace adjustment tool in the Civil Service that simplifies accommodation requests while safeguarding data.

Disability Smart Inclusive Workplace Experience Award (up to 250 employees)

Winner: Inkfire, for embedding accessibility and inclusion into their flexible working policies, business mentoring, and inclusive creative output.

Disability Smart Inclusive Recruitment Award

Winner: Enterprise East Group CIC, for its ‘Inclusion and Thrive’ supported employment programme, combining practical training with placements in social enterprises.

Disability Smart Inclusive Communication Campaign Award

Winner: London Borough of Lambeth, for its ‘Accessible Lambeth: Blue Badge Awareness & Action’ campaign, which tackles Blue Badge misuse and advocates for disabled motorists’ rights.

Disability Smart Inclusive Customer Experience Award (250+ employees)

Winner: Alexandra Palace, for reimagining how it serves the disabled community, transforming its historic Grade II-listed venue into an inclusive and accessible cultural space.

Disability Smart Inclusive Customer Experience Award (up to 250 employees)

Winner: Mobility in Motion, for its personalised, accessibility-first approach to transforming automotive solutions for disabled customers.

Disability Smart Global Disability Inclusion Award

Winner: Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, for their ‘Accessibility Matrix’—a tool that supports inclusive workplace design through assessments, strategic planning, and communication.

Disability Smart Inclusive Product Design Award

Winner: Cambridge School Classics Project and Cambridge University Press & Assessment, for a new edition of a beginner’s Latin course, adapted into multiple formats to reflect diverse lived experiences and varying learning needs.

SUPPORT FOR THE DISABILITY SMART AWARDS

This year’s awards were sponsored by Freshfields and co-hosted by Business Disability Forum Ambassador and TV personality Simon Minty. “We are delighted to have sponsored the Disability Smart Awards this year, supporting Business Disability Forum in honouring some of the fantastic work being done in this space by organisations and individuals,” stated Helen Ouseley, Global Head of Culture & Community at Freshfields. “We would like to congratulate all the 2025 winners. It is great to see so many different sectors being represented and the positive difference their work is making to the lives of disabled people.”

“It is always a pleasure to co-host the Disability Smart Awards,” added Simon Minty, BDF Ambassador, trainer, consultant and TV personality. “This is my third year now and it is exciting to see how much these businesses and organisations value disability inclusion and the innovative work they are putting in to make it a reality. I always love to hear about new ways of doing things that I’d never thought of before. An award is just a snapshot but it’s also an important moment for all of us to pause, reflect and to be encouraged to work harder and to do even better. This year’s winning entries show just what can happen when people commit to working together to achieve change.”

For full details of the Disability Smart Awards 2025 and the stories behind each winner, visit the Business Disability Forum website. You can also check out the full list of this year’s finalists here and last year’s winners here.

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