

The Menopause and Menstruation Friendly
Employer Awards 2025
September 2025 | Date announced soon!

“From start to finish the room is filled with love, warmth and happiness.”
Amanda O’Loughlin, British Airways – 2024 attendee
Celebrating employers leading the way in women’s health
The Menopause Friendly Employer Awards are back for the fourth year and this time we’re going even further. For the first time, we’re recognising Menopause Friendly and Menstruation Friendly Employers, reflecting the brilliant work so many of you are already doing to support broader women’s health in the workplace.
Together, we’re creating lasting change – breaking down barriers, opening up conversations and making sure those who need it get the support they deserve. We’re changing the lived experience for today and generations to come.
Whether your organisation is focusing on menopause, menstruation, or both, this is your chance to step forward, share what you’ve done and be recognised.

The whole experience was amazing. The highlight for me was our organisation winning which was the biggest bonus and totally unexpected.
Leigh Staff, Young Epilepsy
Why get involved?
These awards aren’t just about recognition – they’re about celebrating how far we’ve come and inspiring even more progress. Every step forward makes a difference and we’d love to see you and your organisation be part of it.
Be recognised – Celebrate your organisation’s progress and inspire others.
Share best practice – Show what’s working and help shape the future of workplace support.
Be part of something bigger – Together, we’re changing the way workplaces support menopause and menstruation for good.

“My highlight was connecting with people (old friends and new) that we are normally only able to meet virtually and feeling the depth of warmth and positivity in the room….and of course winning a special award.”
Jackie Williams, HSBC UK
Apply for awards
You need to be a Menopause Friendly Member to apply for Menopause Awards and a Menstruation Friendly Member to apply for Menstruation Awards. Not a member yet? Click here.
Here are the key dates to mark in your diary…
KEY DATES:
1 MARCH 2025
Applications open
31 JULY 2025
Applications close
1 SEPTEMBER 2025
Finalists announced
SEPTEMBER 2025
Winners announced at Award Ceremony – date to be confirmed soon!

““From the moment I walked into the hotel to the moment I left, I felt excited and energised.”
Fiona Parkinson, EON

Menopause Friendly Award Categories
Click to learn more about the six Menopause Friendly company award categories for 2025.
Recognising an accredited organisation that has truly embedded menopause awareness, education and support into its workplace culture.
Awarded to an organisation where menopause is spoken about openly, with strong leadership and a culture of support.
Celebrating an organisation that has made real, practical changes to its workplace environment to support menopause.
Awarding an organisation that has run a brilliant campaign, raising awareness and sparking conversations.
Recognising an organisation that has invested in training, giving employees and managers the confidence and knowledge to offer real support.
Celebrating an organisation that has built a strong network where colleagues support each other, creating a culture of care.

“An opportunity to network with a fabulous bunch of like-minded, positive people”
Melanie Johnson-Remy, Ramboll

Menstruation Friendly Award Categories
Click to learn more about the three NEW Menstruation Friendly company award categories for 2025.
Recognising an organisation where menstruation is talked about openly and supported without stigma.
Celebrating an organisation that has raised awareness and driven real change through an inspiring campaign.
Awarding an organisation that has equipped employees and managers with the knowledge to support colleagues experiencing menstruation.
Apply for Awards by 31 July 2025. Finalists will be announced on 1 September 2025 and winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony.
THE CAROLYN LAZARUS AWARD
Individual Contribution to Menopause and/or Menstruation
Honouring an individual who has made a real and lasting impact on improving workplace support for menopause and menstruation.
The Carolyn Lazarus Award is a very special accolade and will be given to the individual who has made the most significant impact on changing the way people think and feel about menopause, in or out of the
workplace.
Carolyn Lazurus was the founder of totally4women (t4w), an online community for women to allow and encourage them to share their experiences, ask the kind of questions they had felt unable to raise before and offer support to one another.
The success of her initiative brought women together, often allowing them to gain, or regain, confidence and a sense of being. Carolyn was full of energy and fortitude: her determination and willingness to listen and learn was born
out of her passion to help other women.
Tragically, Carolyn, wife to Marc and mother to Daisy and Chad, lost her battle with cancer in 2016. Throughout her life she faced challenges and opportunities with courage and strength of spirit and would be pleased to know this award recognises such attributes in its recipient.
BE INSPIRED…
Winners from 2022-2024

“The event has such a ‘feel good’ factor about it, like awards without the competition! The camaraderie was palpable!”
Michelle Wakelin, American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT)
The Menopause Friendly Employer Awards makes a difference to lives
The Menopause Friendly Employer Awards raises vital funds for menopause and menstruation related charities, programmes and research alongside ticket sales and donations. Since its inception, the Menopause Friendly Employer Awards has raised £190,000.
Here is some of the difference it’s made…

Bournemouth University
Fully funding a 3-year study into the impact of menopause symptoms on autistic people, including what sort of support and adjustments may be able to help in the workplace

The Daisy Network
Raising money for The Daisy Network, a charity that supports those impacted by early menopause and POI (Premature Ovarian Insufficiency) through providing information, support groups and more.
Meet the Menopause Friendly judging panel…
Alongside governing the Menopause and Menstruation Friendly Standards, the Independent Panel review all applications for the Menopause and Menstruation Friendly Employer Awards, select short listers, highly commended entries and winners.
Alongside the Awards, they are also responsible for governing the Menopause Friendly standards, reviewing applications for The Menopause Friendly Accreditation.
All experts in their field, with distinguished careers across a huge range of industries. Above all, they have one thing in common: they’re passionate about accelerating change in menopause in the workplace best practice.

PROFESSOR JO BREWIS
Professor Brewis is co-author of the Government Equalities Office, Menopause transition: effects on women’s economic participation .
Putting this work into practice by introducing the first university menopause policy in the UK, and helping employers understand why being menopause friendly is urgent and important.

Evelyn dickey
A Non-Executive Director on the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) Board, Evelyn has extensive People Leadership experience.
She pioneered the introduction of the first menopause policy in Severn Trent in 2017 and has continually encouraged other employers to do the same.

Paul sesay
Paul Sesay is the Founder and CEO of the Inclusive Top 50 Employers, National Diversity Awards, Excellence in Diversity Awards and The Diversity Group.
With nearly 20 years’ experience within the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion sector, Paul has worked with some of the largest organisations in the world on their diversity and inclusion.

susannah fish obe
Ex-Chief Constable Sue Fish OBE introduced the first menopause policy into a police force in 2017, during her 30-year policing career.
She’s passionate about menopause and leadership, encouraging all employers to take menopause awareness, education and support seriously.

jog hundle
Jog heads the health and care employment team at Mills & Reeve, having specialised in the sector for over 25 years.
She’s passionate about helping employers understand the importance of taking menopause seriously to benefit employees and the organisation.

Heidi cooper
Heidi is an Associate in the Employment and Immigration team at HCR Law.
It’s her mission to make sure menopause is discussed as openly as the office coffee order and weekend plans. Partnering with Henpicked in 2018, she passionately champions menopause awareness and regularly educates organisations on the critical aspects of menopause in the workplace.

Suzanne banks cbe
A recently retired NHS chief nurse, Suzanne is passionate about raising the profile of menopause in the workplace, having created and introduced the comprehensive programme at Sherwood Forest Hospitals Foundation Trust in 2018.
Since then, she’s encouraged other NHS Trusts to take action.

anne bell
Anne was the Senior People Lead at HSBC UK Corporate Bank. She was instrumental in recognising the need for menopause awareness, education and providing support for individuals.
She started the campaign resulting in HSBC UK becoming the UK’s first accredited Menopause Friendly employer.

dr BELINDA STEFFAN
Belinda is a Research Fellow and gender scholar at the University of Edinburgh studying how work is reciprocally influenced by the intersection of gender, age and health and well-being.
Working with industry partners, she develops practical, meaningful workplace solutions around gender, age, health and work. Her research-led lectures address local and global workforce challenges of business and the future of work.

pamela hutchinson
As the Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Bloomberg, Pamela leads the company’s diversity and inclusion initiatives around the world whilst establishing strategic direction, goals and accountability.
Pamela is cited as one of the most visible and vocal thought leaders and advocates for diversity across the private sector and has more than 20 years’ experience in managing diversity cross engineering, financial services, technology and media.

Helen normoyle
Helen is co-founder of My Menopause Centre, an online clinic and community empowering women to take control of their menopause.
She has held Chief Marketing Officer roles with Boots, the BBC, DFS and Countrywide and worked in broadcast and telecoms regulation at Ofcom and in the mobile technology sector with Motorola.

CAROL ATKINSON
Professor Carol Atkinson has undertaken research into menopause in the workplace, including the police service and the NHS.
She has written research papers and blogs about this, including for The Conversation and Sage Perspectives. Her work has lead to changes in practice, one NHS developing its Women’s Health Policy as a result.

THERESA WINTERS
Theresa was the Senior HR Manager for Employee Experience at Santander UK.
She led the creation of a broad programme of menopause support that saw Santander recognised as Best Open Workplace at the Menopause Friendly Employer awards in 2023 and Theresa was the first recipient of the Carolyn Lazarus award in 2022, recognising her personal contribution of raising awareness of menopause across the UK, within and outside the workplace.

PAUL STARBUCK
Paul is an Executive Coach and Leadership Development Specialist with extensive experience as a senior leader in retail and healthcare before founding Starbuck & Associates.
His business offers a range of coaching and development programmes, including those tailored for women in leadership and for those navigating perimenopause and menopause.

Not a member yet? Book a call to get started…
You need to be a Menopause Friendly Member to apply for menopause awards and a Menstruation Friendly Member to apply for menstruation awards.
It’s not too late to join – book a free call to discuss membership options with a member of our expert team.
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