QUEENS AWARD FOR ENTERPRISE
(14 July 2004)

A new Queen's Award for people making outstanding contributions to the promotion of enterprise was announced today (14 July 2004) . The Queen's Award for Enterprise Promotion will go to individuals, complementing the well established and successful Queen's Awards that reward collective efforts by the UK's top performing businesses in International Trade, Innovation and Sustainable Development.

The new Award will celebrate a wide range of activities both national and local, from fostering novel methods of mentoring young business people to outstanding leadership in promoting entrepreneurship as a career option.

The creation of The Queen's Award for Enterprise Promotion follows discussions within Government on new ways of highlighting the importance of entrepreneurship to the UK economy by rewarding the development and promotion of enterprise. It will celebrate and recognise the activities of people who make outstanding individual contributions to an enterprise culture in the UK.

Up to ten Awards will be granted each year, and in addition a single Lifetime Achievement Award may go to an individual judged to have carried out consistent and high quality promotion of enterprise culture over a substantial period of time. They could go for instance to business people who successfully engage young people in entrepreneurship, as individuals, or through schools or youth organisations, or who develop business support services for hard-to-reach communities - proving that businesses can be run successfully in disadvantaged areas to create jobs and improve local economies.

Chancellor Gordon Brown said: "We should celebrate the entrepreneur, opening up enterprise to everyone who works hard and has the talent, and this new Award for enterprise will reinforce the whole country's support for the best of British business. For the sake of Britain's future I want every child enthused with the spirit of enterprise. I want entrepreneurs to be seen as role models for young people and I want Britain to celebrate business success the way we rightly celebrate success in other fields such as sport or films."

The Queen will make the Awards on the advice of the Prime Minister who is assisted by an Enterprise Promotion Assessment Committee. Membership includes representatives of Government Departments and Agencies including the Small Business Service, the Department for Education and Skills, and the Department of Trade and Industry as well as the Small Business Council and other business organisations.

ENTERPRISE AWARD ENTRY CRITERIA

Enterprise promotion covers encouraging or facilitating the sort of skills and attitudes which are found in an enterprise environment, whether in a commercial business or a social enterprise. This list illustrates the types of activity which nominees might have undertaken. I

• Establishing an organisation which offers new role models and novel business models to motivate people to engage in enterprise;
• Developing innovative methods to increase understanding of business processes in interesting and fun ways and supplement formal business skills provision;
• Increasing the number of small business volunteers/mentors in experience schemes;
• Increasing enterprise awareness amongst those who are likely to have an influential role in people's career choices;
• Pioneering methods that set out to demystify the risks of enterprise and promote the development of skills to manage that risk;
• Developing partnerships between the business community and educational institutions or youth organisations;
• Working to change the perception that deprived areas are not places where businesses can be established and run successfully.

In addition, the Committee will consider whether the individual's activity relates to particular target groups who are likely to benefit eg young people (whether or not in full-time education); and/or disadvantaged communities and under-represented groups and will take this into account.

The Lifetime Achievement Award would be given for consistent and high quality promotion of an enterprise culture over a substantial period of time. This Award will only be given for an outstanding record of achievement and may not be granted every year.

Nominations can be made up to midnight on 31 October 2004 in order to be considered for Awards which will be announced on 21 April 2005 (The Queen's birthday). Nomination forms together with background and guidance notes are available on The Queen's Awards Office website on www.queensawards.org.uk