The Information and Records Management Society (IRMS) has recognised success in education, innovation, the next generation, and sustainability at its annual awards ceremony. Seven prestigious awards were presented during a gala dinner held at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole on Monday, May 19th, during the IRMS Conference 2025.
The Team of the Year award was presented to the Higher Education (HE) / Further Education (FE) Sector team at Jisc, a not-for-profit digital, data and technology agency focused on tertiary education, research and innovation. The award recognises its guide to records retention management, which has become a vital resource for records managers in the HE and FE sectors.
The IRMS also recognises the accomplishments of individuals during the past year and throughout an entire career. The Professional of the Year award was presented to Victoria Blyth, Pan-London Information Governance Lead at the Office of Technology & Innovation. A former recipient of the award (2015) is Vicky Beddall, who this year was presented with an IRMS Lifetime Achievement award, in recognition of the exceptional contribution made during a long career in information and records management.
During the awards, the IRMS also acknowledged the importance of attracting new talent to the industry and recognising their commitment. During the judging process, the independent panel were impressed by the work being done by Carys Hardy, Assistant Records Manager at The University of Manchester, who was presented with the Alison North New Professional Award for a paper entitled Mind the Gap: Navigating Records Management Terminology as a New Professional.
Carys commented on winning the award that is supported by Lighthouse IG: “Winning this award for my article not only validates my work but also recognises the importance of addressing the terminological barriers that many IRMS members face in the workplace and the need for communication to be at the forefront of our minds when progressing initiatives that support information and records management practices. It inspires me to continue to contribute to the industry and to advocate for an emphasis on clear communication and terminology as information and records management professionals.”
The Digital Decarbonisation in Action award is a new award that shines a light on the critical role of information and records managers and teams in reducing emissions associated with inefficient data practices. The inaugural recipient of the award is OASIS Group, which demonstrated to the judging panel how its digital decarbonisation initiatives are improving how data is created, processed, and stored to help achieve sustainability and economic goals within the organisation.
It was also a successful night for the information management training company, Leadership Through Data. Chief Executive Officer & Founder, Jacqueline Stockwell, was presented with the Innovation of the Year award (an award the company also won in 2020) and Principal Consultant, Rachel Mitchell, collected the Supplier of the Year award on behalf of the company.
Chair of the IRMS, Jaana Pinnick, presented the winners with their awards and commented: “The IRMS Awards is not only a proud moment for those receiving their trophies, it is a recognition of the collective progress that we are making through shared best practice and the adoption of new technologies and innovations.” Pinnick adds: “This evening we have celebrated a lifetime dedication, the talent of the next generation and acknowledged the commitment to help our organisations meet wider sustainability aims. In presenting these awards, I am extremely proud to be an ambassador for our sector.”
About the Information and Records Management Society (IRMS)
The Information and Records Management Society (IRMS) is the foremost association for information professionals and students, supporting and bringing together all those working in information governance, records management, data protection, information security and more, across all industry sectors, in the UK and beyond.
As well as its annual conference that attracts more than 500 attendees, the IRMS offers professional accreditation available to all, produces a high-quality bimonthly industry magazine, and operates a network of geographic and special interest groups across the UK and Ireland. Visit www.irms.org.uk/join to find out more.
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