There is a simple truth behind everything the Tees Valley EDI Awards do: representation matters. When a young person from an ethnic minority background sees someone who looks like them, shares their heritage, or has walked a similar road being celebrated on stage, something shifts. A future that felt out of reach suddenly looks possible. Formerly the BME Achievement Awards, our ceremony has put that visibility centre stage since 2010, and it may be the single most important thing the awards give the next generation.
Why representation matters
You cannot be what you cannot see. That phrase has become shorthand for a real effect: role models change what young people believe they are capable of. A teenager who watches a business owner, a community leader or a healthcare champion from their own community collect an award is not just applauding a stranger. They are quietly updating their own sense of what is possible for someone like them.
Representation also signals belonging. When achievement across every community is recognised in public, it tells young people that they are part of the region’s story, not a footnote to it. That sense of belonging is one of the strongest foundations there is for confidence, ambition and resilience.
The scale of why it matters
Around 18% of people in England and Wales are from a Black, Asian, Mixed or Other ethnic group, according to the 2021 Census. Yet visible role models from those communities remain under-represented in boardrooms, on stages and in the media that young people grow up watching. Celebrating achievement locally, in a young person’s own region, helps close that gap in the place it is felt most.
What the EDI Awards do for young people
The awards put young talent and the people who invest in it in the spotlight. The Youth Awards celebrate young leaders who champion equality, diversity and inclusion among their peers, alongside the employers and organisations backing apprenticeships and skills for the next generation. Across every other category, from Business to Community to Lifetime Achievement, young people in the room see a full spectrum of role models, proof that there is a path for them in whatever they dream of doing.
Representation is not only about the winners on stage. It is about who is in the audience, who reads about it afterwards, and who decides, because of what they saw, to aim a little higher.
More than a moment on stage
The impact of representation does not end when the applause fades. A young person who was in the room, or who saw the photos afterwards, carries that image with them. It shapes the subjects they choose, the jobs they apply for, and the belief that walks into the interview with them. Teachers, youth workers and parents tell us that seeing local role models celebrated gives them something powerful to point to: real people, from real Tees Valley communities, who did it. That is why the awards are not just one night a year. They are a set of stories a whole community can draw on, all year round, and a reminder that talent exists in every community when it is given the chance to be seen.
How you can help
You can be the reason a young person sees themselves differently. Nominate a young changemaker, or nominate a role model whose visibility will inspire others. It is free and takes about ten minutes, and nominations for 2026 are open until 2 October.
Explore the award categories, read more about the awards, or nominate someone now. Representation matters, and every nomination helps a young person in Tees Valley see what they can become.
