Forward Ladies has announced the shortlist for the 2017 National Awards, sponsored by HSBC; bringing together start-ups, multi-million pound businesses, academics and international business leaders in what promises to be an impactful event.

In announcing the Yorkshire, North East and Scotland region shortlist, Forward Ladies Managing Director Griselda Togobo unveiled the names of 67 entrepreneurial female business leaders who will compete across twelve categories.

Griselda commented: “This has been a fantastic year for women and now it’s time to change gear and focus on the support needed to nurture talent regardless of gender, sector or region. The calibre of entries has been increasing year on year, but this year we have a number of outstanding entries and here at Forward Ladies we very much look forward to celebrating and sharing their success.”

The shortlisted applicants in each of the categories will be invited to attend the glittering regional final at the Crowne Plaza, Newcastle on Friday 22nd September. The winners from this, and the other regional finals, will then be invited to appear before a live panel of independent judges in November, followed by the national final in Leeds on 1st December.

Jennifer Crawley, UK Head of Performance for Business Banking, HSBC and judge said: “There was an impressive number of high-calibre entries this year, highlighting the quality of talented businesswomen we have in the UK. These entrants are the future entrepreneurs of our country, with the Forward Ladies event to showcase the best Britain has to offer. HSBC will be supporting them every step of the way to ensure their businesses prosper and thrive in the long term.”

Other judges include Ajaz Ahmed, the founder of Freeserve, Jan Flawn CBE, founder of PJ Care, Sahar Hashemi, founder of Coffee Republic and Dale Murray, Co-Founder of Omega Logic.