Meet the Winners of Our Club Wellgate Recognition Awards
Ash Akhtar, Head of Culture and Engagement (Club Wellgate)
On Wednesday 9 September 2026, we brought together some of our shortlisted colleagues and the winners to celebrate the people who make Wellgate the best place to work and grow a career in care and support.
We experienced a lot of emotion during the ceremony. Events like this matter because they make a difference to the people recognised for living our values and going above and beyond.
Our values, Compassion, Independence and Standards, aren't things we ask people to memorise. They're things we watch happen across our services every day. During the ceremony, we had lots of applause, cheers and tears when people's names were called out. It was great to see the pride on the faces of managers watching their teams get the recognition they've earned for being the best at what they do.
This wasn't about trophies, but it was proof that when we say Wellgate is the best place to work and grow a career in care and support, we mean it.
If you weren't in the room, or just want to relive it, here are two minutes that capture the day better than words can.
Now, scroll through the gallery below to see the moments themselves, the nerves before names were read out, the hugs, the applause that wouldn't stop.
[GALLERY]
If you spot someone you know, a colleague, a friend, someone from your service, drop them a congratulations in the comments. It costs nothing, and it means everything.
To everyone recognised, and everyone who took the time to nominate them, thank you. This is what happens when people show up for each other, every day, in services across the country.
Remember, you don't need a ceremony to make someone feel appreciated. Saying thank you in the moment, out loud, makes a huge difference in how valued someone feels. Gallup's research found that people who feel properly recognised at work are 45% less likely to have left their job within two years.
We already run monthly shout-outs in our Club Wellgate updates, so if you've got someone you want to recognise, don't wait for the next awards; shout about them now. Message me directly, and I'll get it into the next update.
Here's to celebrating even more of our amazing colleagues next year.
Thanks
Ash Akhtar
Head of Culture and Engagement (Club Director)
ash@clubwellgate.com