Thoughts from the MJ Awards

On 15^th June, Green Park were thrilled to once again be a headline sponsor of the 13^th Annual MJ Local Government Achievement Awards. The awards, that brought together local authorities from all over the UK in London’s Hilton Park Lane, celebrate the top achievements from Britain’s councils over the past year. Andrea Trainer, Neil Lupin, Ella Milward Hamylton andI attended on behalf of Green Park’s Local Government practice.

The MJ Awards are particularly important currently as, in the face of austerity, local authorities have had to work under increasing restrictions and pressures whilst continuing to achieve higher demands. In spite of this, they continue to deliver strong results for the communities they serve and the awards give the sector a chance to recognise the great work still being delivered.

The awards are also a great way for the winners to share their expertise with their peers. Awards such as ‘Excellence in Community Engagement’ won by Durham County Council and ‘Best Council Services Team’ won by Birmingham City Council T/A Cityserve both demonstrate and give platform to strong case studies of success. It was lovely to see such a wide range of entries and winners and I hope it encourages the hard work to continue and even more entries for 2018.

The night’s big award was the Local Authority of the Year, a category that has been sponsored by Green Park for the past four years. Earlier this year, both Neil and Andrea joined five local authority chief executives from across the UK on the judging panel and although it was a tough decision, there could only be one winner. After much deliberation, the panel decided to highly commend Stockton on Tees Borough Council with the accolade being given to the City of Wolverhampton which gave them their fourth award of the night. Judges praised Wolverhampton for delivering ‘consistently excellent services across all key areas’ and the council was described as an ‘outstanding example of modern local government where the resident is at the heart of sound commercial decision-making.’

The night was hosted by the absolutely fabulous Joanna Lumley, who did a brilliant job at driving home the importance of the work of local authorities with her legendary and rapier wit.

Congratulations again to all winners. It was truly and honour to be part of such a wonderful night again.

Winners: