6 May 2020

Hair salons, barbershops and beauty salons from across the country were celebrated at the Hair & Beauty Community Awards on Wednesday (6 May 2020). The awards, run by the National Hair & Beauty Federation, were held and announced via Instagram Live (@nhbfsocial) after coronavirus restrictions meant that the awards could not take place at The Houses of Parliament as planned.

The awards were launched in 2019 to recognise and promote the fantastic work hair salons, barbershops and beauty salons do to support their local communities. As well as providing hair and beauty services to clients, many are also community hubs, playing an instrumental role in improving their local communities, fundraising for good causes and promoting health and wellbeing in the community they serve.

Members of Parliament including Alister Jack, Secretary of State for Scotland, Co-Chairs of the Beauty, Aesthetics and Wellbeing All Party Parliamentary Group Carolyn Harris and Judith Cummins, and other MPs all took the time to recognise and celebrate the achievements of our industry via video messages, letters of thanks and social media.

The winners of the 2020 Hair & Beauty Community Awards were:

‘Helping Charities’ award

  • Winner: Hair 'N' Beauty - Castleford, West Yorkshire

Hair ‘n’ Beauty supports many charities but their main focus has been My Hospital Charity which includes their local hospital, Pinderfields, in Wakefield and Wakefield Hospice.  The team at the salon support the children’s ward and its patients at Christmas and Easter. Each December, they hold a gift drive, appealing for presents for young people who will be spending Christmas in hospital.  And they’ve been known to dress up as elves to deliver the presents too!

‘Helping the Environment’ award

  • Winner: Anne Veck - Oxford

Refitting their Oxford salon in 2013 to create a stylish, green destination salon with a focus on reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions, Anne Veck is now more energy efficient than a power station! In 2019 they were officially certified as carbon neutral whilst also experiencing 15% year on year growth, showing salons everywhere that it is possible to look after the environment and be business savvy.

‘Helping the Local Community’ award

  • Winner: Hairforce 1 Training Academy - Romford

Hairforce 1 Training Academy won the ‘helping the community’ award for a string of community-based projects, using barbering as a positive influence and mentoring young people who struggle to find opportunities elsewhere. They work to ensure all youth are given a fair chance and encourage them to stay off the street and in education. As such, Hairforce 1 has become a hub for the local youth who come to get a haircut, advice, education or even just to relax in a safe environment.

‘Helping Charities’ award

  • Highly Commended: Liv's Hair & Beauty - Dumfries
  • Highly Commended: The Head Gardener Inverness

‘Helping the Environment’ award

  • Highly Commended: Hair by Carla - Winterbourne Dauntsey, Salisbury
  • Highly Commended: Barnet and Belle - Poole, Dorset

 ‘Helping the Local Community’ award

  • Highly Commended: Quiffys - Eastleigh
  • Highly Commended: Spirit Hair Team - Ystrad Mynach
  • Highly Commended: Hair 'N' Beauty - Castleford, West Yorkshire

NHBF President, Ian Egerton said: “I would like to say a huge congratulations to the winners of our Community Awards. The entries we received were so inspiring and really blew us away, going above and beyond not just for their clients but for the greater good, whether that be the people that benefit from their charity work, the planet or the community around them. Thank you from us to you.”

For further information on the NHBF's Hair & Beauty Community Awards, visit www.nhbf.co.uk/events/community-awards