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RNIB Employment Team finalist for 2019 ERSA Employability Award

Posted Friday, 10 May 2019 Categories: Press release

The Royal National Institute of Blind People’s (RNIB) Employment team has been shortlisted as a finalist for the ERSA Employability Awards 2019 in the Team of the Year category.

Now in its seventh year, the ERSA Employability Awards celebrate best practice across the employment support sector and seek to demonstrate the day-to-day hard work and dedication of those working to improve the lives of jobseekers, communities and the wider workforce. 

The RNIB Employment Team, part of RNIB’s Sight Loss Advice Service, has supported over 2,000 people to transform their lives since April 2018 and has been nominated for the Team of the Year award. The nomination recognises a team of frontline staff which has demonstrated outstanding commitment in meeting and exceeding the delivery aims of an employment service provider.

ERSA received over 150 entries from across the UK. This year’s submissions were judged by an all-star panel consisting of internationally recognised political thinker and Director of ResPublica, Phillip Blond, editor of The Sun’s employment page, Jane Hamilton, senior civil servant at the Department for Work and Pensions, Mark Staley, and Winner of Adviser of the Year 2018, Tanya Weston of Genius Within.

As a successful finalist, representatives from the RNIB team will attend a special ceremony on 20 June with the Minister for Employment, Alok Sharma MP. 

Martin O’ Kane, Specialist Lead for the RNIB Employment Team, said: “We are delighted to be shortlisted in this category of Team of the Year. Our team works very hard to achieve positive outcomes for the blind and partially sighted people we support, and it is fantastic to be acknowledged for this work by the ERSA.”

Elizabeth Taylor, Interim Chief Executive, ERSA, said: ‘This year’s ERSA Employability Award submissions demonstrate the extraordinary achievements of individuals and organisations supporting people to enter, sustain and progress in work. The huge number of nominations ERSA received highlight the breadth of the commitment in the sector and the tireless work that goes on at the frontline every day. Congratulations to all our finalists!’

Please visit ersa.org.uk/news/finalists2019  for a full list of finalists.