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Finalists Announced for the Working Families Best Practice Awards 2026  

Published: 19 May 2026

The UK’s national charity for working parents and carers, Working Families, has revealed the shortlist for its 2026 Best Practice Awards. The awards celebrate the organisations leading the way in creating workplaces where everyone can thrive. 

 Now in their seventeenth year, Working Families’ Best Practice Awards showcase and honour employers who are setting the standard for flexible, people-first working cultures. 

The winners will be announced at the Family Friendly Champions Celebration event hosted at Mayer Brown on 30 June. 

Employers from a diverse range of sectors from across the UK have competed to catch the judges’ attention in nine categories. The shortlisted organisations are:   

Best for Mothers  

  • Lloyds Banking Group  
  • Northern Trains 

Best for Fathers 

  • British Heart Foundation  
  • Clyde & Co  
  • Pan Macmillan 

Best for Carers & Eldercare 

  • Aviva 
  • Barratt Redrow  
  • Lloyds Banking Group  

Best Family Network – Sponsored by WorkLife Central 

  • Nationwide Building Society  
  • North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT)  
  • NSPCC  
  • PA Consulting 

Best for Supporting Wellbeing 

  • BNP Paribas  
  • British Heart Foundation  
  • KPMG  
  • University of Huddersfield 

Best for All-round Flexibility 

  • HubGem  
  • Independent Living Fund Scotland  
  • NHS Professionals  

Best Small Employer:- Sponsored by BreatheHR 

  • Forward Carers CIC  
  • Independent Living Fund Scotland  
  • Women’s Work Lab 

Best for Supporting Different Pathways to Parenthood 

  • HSBC  
  • Nationwide Building Society  
  • Lloyds Banking Group 

Family-Friendly Champion of the Year – Sponsored by BlckBx  

This category will be announced on 30 June. 

Jane van Zyl, Chief Executive of Working Families said:  

Every year, the Best Practice Awards reminds us that putting people first is not a compromise but a commitment that pays dividends for everyone. A huge congratulations to each of our finalists, who have all made a deliberate choice to do things differently, with results that speak for themselves.

This year’s finalists have raised the bar again, demonstrating that flexibility, inclusion and support for working families are not obstacles to success but the foundations that make it sustainable. There is still a lot to do before every working parent and carer gets the support they deserve. But these employers represent the future of work, and I am proud to celebrate their commitment and inspired by what their example means for the thousands of working families who benefit from it every day.

  • A group of diverse women sit chatting and smiling at work

    Best Practice Awards

    Our annual Best Practice Awards open in December and close for entries at the end of February, celebrating employers who are going above and beyond in their support for parents and carers.