Hull company granted royal award for helping people into work

Hull-headquartered Sewell Group has been honoured with one of the UK’s most prestigious awards for the second time.

The company, which includes businesses that work in estates consultancy, construction, retail, facilities management and software, has been awarded a King’s Award for Enterprise for Promoting Opportunity for its work in supporting people from disadvantaged backgrounds into employment. It’s one of only four businesses in the region to receive the accolade this year and the first to have two in this category.

The award, which recognises outstanding achievement by UK businesses, follows Sewell Group receiving a Queen’s Award in 2021, for their continued commitment and advocacy of social mobility within the business community.

The award will be presented by the King’s representative, HM Lord-Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire, Mr. Jim Dick, OBE. He said:

“I am delighted to congratulate Sewell Group on winning the 2026 King’s Award for Enterprise in the Promoting Opportunities through Social Mobility category. To be recognised again, following their Queen’s Award in 2021 in the same category, is a remarkable testament to their sustained commitment to inclusion, skills and development. The Sewell Group continue to make a meaningful difference to people’s lives and set an inspiring example of how businesses can create lasting social and economic impact in our region.”

The King’s Award recognises Sewell’s GATEway initiative, a programme that aims to help people from disadvantaged backgrounds into the world of work through graduate opportunities, apprenticeships, trainee schemes, work experience and advocacy. Since launching, the GATEway programme has supported over 300 individuals to access meaningful work placements within the company and of those, 69% from disadvantaged backgrounds have gone on to secure further education, employment or training.

Sewell Group has long standing partnerships with schools and colleges across the region and collaborates with charities CatZero and Hull and East Yorkshire Children’s University to provide work placements for local people who would otherwise struggle to find employment.

Harry Taylor took part in a four-week work placement with Sewell Group as part of their GATEway programme in 2021. Since then, he has gone on to achieve a Level 2 qualification in bricklaying with local firm JR Jackson & Sons and is studying towards his Level 3 to allow him to progress into a supervisory role. His talent and commitment were further recognised when he was named Bishop Burton College Construction Apprentice of the Year.

Reflecting on his journey, Harry said: “I didn’t expect a short placement to turn into a career, but once I got started, I knew this was what I wanted to do. I’ve been supported every step of the way, and I’m proud of how far I’ve come.”

Paul Sewell, Chair of Sewell Group, said:

“After the pandemic, Hull was ranked the fourth most deprived city in the UK, with high levels of unemployment and skills gaps in key industries and we wanted to do something to help. Our approach to business has always been to enrich local communities and create opportunities for people, so we came up with the GATEway programme to help focus our efforts.

“Partnering with organisations such as CatZero, we’ve been able to reach people that need the most support and provide meaningful opportunities for them that have led to further employment. Our strategy is all about creating better life chances for people and social mobility within our communities. We’re a big believer that skills can be taught, we recruit based on attitude and cultural fit. Many of our people have come through the business, with 75% of our senior team being trained on the job, rather than coming through traditional academic routes.

“We’re already looking to the future to explore what else we can do to support people into work, and the launch of our new Digital Construction Academy will open up more opportunities in industries where we know there are skills gaps.”

Over the last few years, the group has also supported military veterans, pupils from St Anne’s School and other young people with special educational needs & disabilities (SEND), developing a toolkit for other employers to help encourage them to take on more work experience placements.

Sewell Group’s ‘grow your own’ mentality has seen many people come up through the ranks of the business from apprenticeships to director roles, and it aims to have at least 15% of its workforce in GATEway roles.

Now in its 60th year, the King’s Awards for Enterprise remain the UK’s most prestigious business accolades. Successful organisations may use the esteemed King’s Awards Emblem for the next five years, signalling excellence to customers, partners, and global markets