Congratulations to the winners and finalists of CFG's first annual awards since 2019. More than 430 charity and corporate leaders gathered together on Thursday 8 October at Royal Lancaster in London for CFG's 2026 Annual Dinner and Awards event.
It was an evening of joy and celebration, and an opportunity to recognise the crucial work of finance and operations professionals working in charitable and social change organisations.
The CFG team and the occasion's generous sponsors, including headline sponsor the Benefact Group, would like to once again congratulate all awards finalists and winners, who were selected by a brilliant panel of expert judges. The judges' job wasn't easy but, after many hours of deliberation, they named this year's overall winners:
Excellence in Financial Reporting
This award was kindly sponsored by PwC
WINNER: Mencap
The Mencap team collect their award, with Dan Chan, PwC (right)
Mencap supports people with a learning disabilities alongside their families, and carers to help individuals live their life to the full. In order to support this goal, the Mencap Finance team brings together expertise across consolidated reporting, finance business partnering, finance operations and procurement.
The team has transformed from a traditional support service into a trusted strategic partner, strengthening governance, improving financial insight and enabling better decisions across Mencap. Recent achievements include Power BI budget holder reporting, reducing aged debt by 36%, a smooth sign-off of their 2026 annual accounts, and making financial performance clearer and more accessible for their colleagues.
Mencap are also investing in future capability, with 20% of their colleagues having completed or are currently undertaking data and management apprenticeships, creating opportunities for growth while delivering sustainable organisational improvement aligned to Mencap’s 2030 Strategy.
Nominating the Mencap team for the award, Richard Blakey, CFO, wrote:
"The work the finance team has undertaken this year to align our financial reporting to operational delivery has been transformational, we have taken further steps in the accessibility of our financial information to colleagues and we have underpinned the ambition of our new strategy to a financial model that maintains our financial strength. We have had great feedback from trustees and colleagues."
Best Use of Technology in Finance
This award was kindly sponsored by Unit4
WINNER: Naval Children's Charity
Established in 1825, the Naval Children’s Charity supports children and young people from serving and veteran Naval families up to age 25. Each year, it helps thousands through grants with the Life Chances Programme. To support this goal, they utilised new technology to sit alongside their core finance infrastructure which has allowed Naval Children’s Charity to streamline their grant giving. The result is an overall decreased manual load to achieve their goals, while simultaneously increasing the speed with which those in need can receive their vital support.
Clare Scherer, CEO, who nominated the team, wrote:
"The Naval Children’s Charity has transformed how it delivers financial support in response to growing demand and complexity.
"The introduction of Aspire in 2025 enabled us to streamline our educational bursary programme, managing and delivering financial support, while continuing to work alongside our existing finance systems. Aspire sits alongside our core finance system, acting as the delivery and management layer for bursary payments.
"By adopting Aspire, the team has moved from manual processes to a scalable, insight-led model that delivers faster payments, stronger governance and clearer evidence of impact. This has reduced operational pressure and, importantly, improved our ability to respond quickly to families and young people in need, ensuring support reaches them at the right time. The team demonstrates how technology can be implemented quickly and used effectively to deliver meaningful improvements in both operational performance and beneficiary outcomes."
Excellence in ESG Award
This award was kindly sponsored by Edentree Investment Management/Benefact Group
WINNER: Keep Britain Tidy
Keep Britain Tidy aims to reduce litter, protect nature and create a cleaner, greener future. Their ESG goals were driven by a small HR and finance team, with some incredible victories to their name. Of note is their internal eco-audit to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through banking transitions and pension investment changes. All of this was done within their small team while still managing to keep their business-as-usual work afloat despite these drastic shifts. Read more here.
Nominating the team for the award, Ruth Jenkins, Chief Finance Officer, wrote:
"The Keep Britain Tidy core team has pushed for excellence in this field, and gone far above normal service levels to deliver a leading ESG programme. We are determined to do the very best we can - for each other, and for the world we live in. We must walk the talk on the environment.
"Changing banks took time, but we saved more carbon in that action than in some of our external climate programmes. Each improvement in staff support we make is an investment in a stronger team to deliver greater impact – and that is what we are here to do."
Rising Star in Charity Finance Award
This award was kindly sponsored by: NatWest / JS Group
WINNER: Katy Newman, formerly Raw Material Music and Media Education
Katy Newman is passionate about using finance as a strategic tool to strengthen charities, enabling creative organisations to thrive while delivering greater impact for the communities they serve. She champions good governance, collaborative leadership and continuous improvement, ensuring that strong financial management supports innovation, resilience and lasting social change. Prior to joining The Bureau of Investigative Journalism as Finance Manager in October 2026, Katy was Finance & Resources Manager at Raw Material Music and Media Education. Whilst there, she led on finance, HR, governance and operations.
Nominating Katy for the award, Raw Material Music and Media Education's CEO, Rachel Nelken, wrote:
"Katy is passionate about making sure that finance isn’t something that sits in the background or feels intimidating to others. She works hard to make sure colleagues and trustees genuinely understand our finances and feel confident engaging with them.
"Katy's role has grown because she is so capable, proactive and trusted. Working just three days a week, she manages complex finances, leads on HR and supports two team members outside of finance. We genuinely would not be the successful charity we are today without Katy’s skill, care and commitment."
Inspiring Financial Leadership Award
This award was kindly sponsored by Access Insurance
WINNER: Laura Clare, British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS)
Laura is the Chief Finance Officer at BPAS and is a chartered accountant with an extensive background in healthcare finance. Before joining BPAS two and a half years ago, Laura spent nearly 20 years working within the NHS, where she was committed to improving financial sustainability while maintaining focus on the best outcomes for patients.
Laura’s decision to transition into the charity sector was fuelled by her passion to make a difference to patient experiences and a keen interest in women’s healthcare. Together with the BPAS team, Laura is committed to making a difference, not only in her own organisation, but the wider healthcare sector.
Nominating Laura, Kathryn Webb, Head of Corporate Governance and Company Secretary at BPAS, wrote:
"Laura's move to the BPAS marked a pivotal shift towards mission-driven leadership. Motivated by a deep commitment to women’s healthcare, Laura progressed from deputy CFO at an ICB to BPAS’s Director of Finance, and ultimately, CFO.
"Laura has transformed finance from a back-office function into a strategic partner. Her fresh perspective has replaced financial instability with a culture of reinvestment, ensuring the charity can now confidently fund digital infrastructure, workforce development, expanded research and essential estate improvements – all in service of better care for the women who need our care."
CFG's Volunteer of the Year Award
WINNER: Jon King, founder and chair of CFG's Finance Leaders' Group
Jon King approached Charity Finance Group in 2021 with a vision to create a trusted space for charity finance professionals to connect, share knowledge and collaborate. CFG's Finance Leaders' Group was launched, and in five years it has grown from five members to 200.
Zoe Bennett, CFG's Membership and Engagement Manager, comments: "Jon has established a vibrant network of knowledgeable and generous peers. Those who have been part of the group since those 2021 have seen just how much time, expertise and thoughtful leadership he has put into building this community, and bringing the best experts and topics to our group.
"I often receive feedback about the significant impact that Jon has had, and how invaluable having this supportive network is. Jon makes a point to meet with every new member of the group, which is testament to his dedication and passion for supporting and welcoming other members. We are delighted that Jon has won the Volunteer of the Year Award in 2026. Congratulations from the CFG team!"
Congratulations to our runners-up:
Excellence in Financial Reporting
New Philanthropy Capital
Best Use of Technology in Finance Award
ShelterBox and British and Foreign Bible Society
Excellence in ESG
Cancer Research UK and We The Curious
Rising Star in Charity Finance
Emma Nowak, Mencap and Kamila Aniagolu, Women's Aid
Inspiring Financial Leadership
Hiranya De Alwis Jayasinghe, The Decelerator and Matt Tattersall, Methodist Church in Britain
Congratulations to you all!
A heartfelt thank you to all who generously supported and sponsored CFG's 2026 Annual Dinner and Awards. Without you, the evening would not have been made possible.
Thank you to all those who also generously donated to CFG as part of our event fundraiser. Together, you raised more than £2000 on the night. We are grateful for all your support.
Many thanks also to our compère for the evening, Kevin Durham, and also to our photographer Ben Wetherall. You can view all the images from the evening here.
