Previous Winners Hall of Fame

Last year, The Forshaw Group scooped the Investment in People Award at the 2021 North West LGBTQ+ Business Awards. We sat down with their Managing Director, Liam Hanlon, to discuss what winning the award meant for the Knowsley based business and how it has impacted their day to day operations.

Liam, can you please tell us a little bit about yourself and your business? 

I am the joint managing director of the Forshaw Group based in Knowsley, North Wales & Manchester. Over the past 26 years I have helped grow the business into an industry-leading & award-winning Building & Restoration company. I am passionate about Apprenticeships, youth development and have many charity & community commitments.  

Why did you apply for the LGBTQ+ Business Awards in 2021? 

We applied because we believe passionately in diversity and inclusion. We wanted to lend our support to the awards, especially as it the first year. We also believe that in business, if you are doing something positive, like investing in your staff and promoting ED&I, it's also important that you let people know that you're doing it, both for the PR and also to encourage others to do the same. Being nominated for an award gave us the chance to shout about the good things we were doing. We didn't think we were going to win so it was a lovely surprise! 

What did it mean to win the Investment in People Award? 

We have been a recognised Investors in People Company for over twenty years so it was really fantastic to be honoured for our continued work and recognised for our good practises and commitment to our staff and team members.

Since winning the award, what has changed at TFG? 

Since last year, we have been continuing to promote diversity and inclusion across all sections of the business. One example of this is that we have engaged with the Knowsley Chamber of Commerce to train several facilitators and plan to deliver diversity & inclusion ‘listening’ workshops.  

Do you have any words for someone thinking of applying for this year's awards? 

Do it! These awards are a wonderful way to showcase your support for everything that is important in our increasingly diverse and inclusive society. It's free to enter so what have you got to lose! 

For more information, visit https://www.theforshawgroup.com/