There’s a particular kind of electricity that builds in the days before the Women in Utilities Awards, and this year it was off the scale. Our board meeting on the Thursday afternoon, followed by dinner with the WUN team, has become one of my favourite fixtures of the year, and by the time we sat down together I already knew Friday was going to be something special. There’s something about being back in a room with this group of people that resets you completely. You leave energised, buzzing, reminded exactly why the work matters. And what came next was the third annual Women in Utilities Awards, held on Friday at the Honourable Artillery Company in London. It was, genuinely, one of the best days of my year.

Eight years ago, WUN started as a handful of like-minded women in the utilities sector who wanted to build something better for the women coming up behind them. Sitting in a room with 800 people on Friday, all there for the same reason, I could have burst with pride at how far that idea has travelled. The awards, delivered in partnership with Utility Week, have grown every single year, and this one felt like the biggest leap yet, not just in numbers but in the sheer energy in the room. New categories this year, including Technology Champion, Frontline Excellence and the #SpeakUp Award, showed how far the conversation has moved on too, celebrating not just individual achievement but the real culture shift happening across gas, power and water.

The awards themselves were, of course, spectacular. So many outstanding winners and finalists across categories like Women of the Year, Mentor of the Year, Rising Star and EDI Initiative, each one a jaw-dropping reminder of the talent quietly powering our industry forward. But honestly, the real magic of the day was never just about the trophies. It was in the conversations at every table, the sheer warmth of people meeting for the first time after months of virtual calls, and the unmistakable feeling that everyone in that room, winners and non-winners alike, was part of something extraordinary.

Our guest speaker Mandy Hickson, one of the first female RAF fighter jet pilots, gave a keynote that absolutely stopped the room. Her stories of resilience, courage and leadership under pressure were spine-tingling, exactly the reminder we needed that the barriers women have broken in other industries are the same ones we’re working to break in ours. And what made it even more special was that Mandy didn’t just fly in, speak and fly out. She spent the whole afternoon with us, chatting, laughing and genuinely connecting with people at every table. Everyone she spoke to came away glowing, and that generosity with her time meant just as much as the keynote itself.

What struck me most, watching the room, was how much has changed and how much is still to do. The statistics on women in utilities are still not where any of us want them to be. But days like Friday hand you real, tangible hope on a plate, because the future leaders coming through are utterly inspiring, and the appetite to keep pushing for change has never felt stronger or louder. That’s part of why I’m bursting with pride over the launch of Early WUN this year, our first dedicated sub-network for women in their first five years in the sector, whatever age or route brought them there. Having lived through my own career pivot into utilities some years ago, I know first-hand how much difference a supportive community makes when everything feels unfamiliar. Early WUN exists so that no one has to find their feet alone.

None of this happens without the people who give their time to make it happen. The WUN board and our advocates put in an extraordinary amount of work behind the scenes, and spending the day surrounded by them, along with our brilliant training team and long-standing partners, was an absolute highlight. Huge thanks too to Utility Week for a partnership that keeps going from strength to strength, and to everyone who judged, sponsored, entered or simply showed up to cheer on the room.

Congratulations to every finalist and winner from Friday. You didn’t just accept your recognition, you claimed the stage, and the room was electric for it. Here’s to the next twelve months, and to continuing to turn good intentions into real, lasting impact for women across utilities. What a day. What a team. What a community.

Find out more about this year’s winner & keep in the loop for next years Women in Utilities Awards – Friday 2nd July ’27 

Find out more about Early WUN

Note: