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CIHT Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Initiative of the Year Award

Key Dates

Entries Open – 5 January 2026

Deadline for entries – 20 February 2026

Shortlist announced – w/c 23 March 2026

Awards ceremony – 17 June 2026

Talk to us

If you have an urgent question about the awards or just want to check eligibility or see what category is best for your project? Contact us via e-mail at awards@ciht.org.uk

 

Overview

CIHT believes in working towards Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in the transportation sector. A sector that truly represents and better serves diverse communities will enables us to deliver the best solutions to the challenges we face now and into the future.   

This award recognises organisations or individuals who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to EDI through practical initiatives. Examples include impactful allyship programmes; innovative approaches to EDI in construction; and initiatives or projects improving accessibility or the development of accessible technology. 

These are just some of the types of initiatives that could be put forward. 

Achieving impact in one or more of the following areas: organisation, industry, or society, should be a key element of the initiative. 

We welcome submissions that reflect excellence and impact across one of the following areas of focus: workplace initiatives and inclusive professional practice.  

The overall judging will consider how the EDI initiative has been implemented, what steps have been taken in its creation and the measures used to monitor meaningful progress, including strong evidence of:   

  • Proactive and inclusive stakeholder (including community) engagement   

  • Clarity of aims and objectives   

  • The accessibility of the EDI initiative   

  • Lessons learnt during implementation and how they were taken on board   

  • Tangible outcomes   

  • The scalability and replicability of the initiative   

  • Alignment to CIHT’s themes of EDI and professionalism, e.g., how your initiative strengthens diversity and inclusion, or enhances skills and expertise   

The EDI initiative should have made a positive, clear, and measurable contribution to the organisation and/or industry and society. 

   

If your organisation currently works in the highways and transportation sector there is no obstacle to enter

  • The awards are free to enter
  • No project too big or too small
  • Entries can be from any location
  • Entries are open to every organisation working in the sector, whether a CIHT partner or not
  • Entries can be submitted by anyone whether a CIHT member or not
  • Eligible projects can be entered for as many categories as appropriate
  • An organisation can also enter as many distinct eligible projects as they wish for a category
  • Submissions must be made in English only
  • Entries must be submitted no later than Monday, 4 March 2024. We encourage early submission.
  • Entries are judged by impartial expert judges with a diversity of experience and opinion

  

How to enter

All entry submissions must be made online via the online entry portal.

Submissions must be made in English only.

Key Dates

Entries Open – 5 January 2026

Deadline for entries – 20 February 2026

Shortlist announced – w/c 23 March 2026

Awards ceremony – 17 June 2026

   

Why you should enter

  • Every entry will be considered for CIHT events, activities and thought leadership
  • Every shortlisted entry will be highlighted in the website, on social media and in the Transportation Professional magazine, invited to take part in CIHT 8 Questions and is given dedicated space in the CIHT The Work section (viewed by thousands of CIHT members and decision makers in the highways and transportation sector)
  • Every winner will be featured in the website, on social media, in Transportation Professional magazine, provided with branding for tenders and given amazing PR opportunities

Want even more?

  • The award best represents your organisations achievements and gives you a platform to tell your story
  • Receive independent recognition of your achievement by some of the most respected professionals in the sector which makes winning a fantastic accomplishment
  • Enhance your brand reputation as the award provides a sign of quality for potential clients, strategic transport bodies and investors
  • Showcase your work and brand to a global audience of current leaders, decision makers and the future leaders of the sector
  • Stand out from the crowd with amazing PR opportunities
  • Being shortlisted and winning motivates staff, focuses attention on the incredible work the organisation is producing and enhances pride in the organisation
  • Winning an award will attract new talent

  

Eligibility

Your work needs to address all entry criteria, have been live at some point between 01/01/2025 and 01/01/2026, and been fully implemented or open to use for a period of at least 6 months. This will enable you to provide data and evidence that can demonstrate the projects’ positive impact, results and benefits to users. 

Please note, projects that started in or after August 2025 will not be eligible, as they will not be able to demonstrate 6 months of activity on 01/01/2026.

Entries are open to every company or organisation working in the sector, whether a CIHT partner or not 

Entries can be submitted by anyone whether a CIHT member or not.

An organisation can also enter as many distinct eligible projects as they wish for a category.

   

What we will ask you and the points awarded

Executive summary- (max 100 words) (not scored)  

Provide us with an overview of your entry. Tell us what makes your entry a winning one- strategy, creativity and results. Be clear, concise and tell us why your work is worth further attention.

1) Objective –What was the objective of your project? (200 words) (10 Points)  

Provide us with a clear definition of the outcomes your project/product/strategy/initiative was trying to achieve and why. Focus on describing the context in which it took place, the issues or challenges it was trying to solve and how these were impacting transport and society. 

Focus on aligning with the description for this specific award.

2) Strategy - Describe your plan to achieve your objective. Tell us why you did what you did and what the insights that inspired your approach were (Max 300 Words) (10 Points)    

Tell us about how you decided to solve the problem you have identified in section 1 and why your approach was the best solution. Provide the insights that inspired your approach and made it innovative, creative and unique. 

The judges will reward applications that can demonstrate:

  • A clear explanation of your project/product/strategy/initiative
  • A logical explanation of why this option was chosen as the best solution
  • How were priorities and key performance indicators set?

3.Implementation - How has this work been delivered? (Max 250 Words) (10 Points)   

Please describe the key milestones for the successful implementation of the work (e.g. planning, design, delivery, risks management, possible unforeseen circumstances and how you manged them).

Include a description of how you made sure that all relevant stakeholders were engaged in the implementation phase. 

The judges are particularly interested in how challenges and opportunities have been identified and addressed.

4) Results - What have been the results and wider impacts? (Max 250 Words) (10 Points)   

Please describe the results of your work providing quantitative and qualitative evidence. 

The judges will reward applications that can demonstrate through quantitative data:

  • If and how you have delivered the outcome you were trying to achieve
  • How you have performed against the criteria required for this category
  • How you ensured long term value/use of your project 

Entry Rules

  • You are the owner of all intellectual rights in your entry or have all necessary consents from all other owner(s) of intellectual rights in your entry.
  • Entries must be received no later than the published deadline date.
  • All submissions must be made online.
  • All entries must be supplied and conform to the category rules and submission formats.
  • Work entered into more than one category must be treated as a completely separate entry, we encourage you to address the different criteria for each category you are submitting your entry. 
  • The judges’ decision is final.
  • Due to the number of entries received, we cannot give feedback on individual entries.
  • By entering these awards, you give the organisers the right to share, publish and otherwise use the entry in all media and CIHT publications.
  • The evidence contained in the submission must be correct and you can provide further details if required.
  • The organisers reserve the right to verify that all entries have been produced for a client or for the public where relevant.

   

What should be included in an entry

  • A high resolution, 300 dpi, version of your company logo. If your project involved more organisations, please provide their logos as well.
  • A hero image of your project to be used for CIHT promotional material if you are shortlisted.
  • Your entry should not exceed the word limit.
  • An executive summary of the activity. The summary will not be scored but will be used as an aid by judges and will appear on the website and promotional material if you are nominated. Tell people why your entry is so good and why it is worth further attention.
  • Supporting material: photographs, videos and/ or other graphic images that illustrate your projects and, where possible, the outcomes is encouraged. 
  • At least one photo or image provided should be in high resolution, 300 dpi, for potential reproduction in promotional material.

   

Help and support

Awards enquiries: awards@ciht.org.uk

Award ceremony enquiries: conferences@ciht.org.uk

Sponsorship enquiries: ben.sellers@thinkpublishing.co.uk

  

Tags Road Safety Transport Planning CIHT National Awards
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