INSPIRATION women in Wales have been celebrated at the Chwarae Teg Womenspire Awards 2022.

The awards, now in their seventh year, recognise women’s accomplishments in every aspect of life, from personal achievements to outstanding contributions in their field and community. 

Winners were announced at a hybrid ceremony in Cardiff which was presented by Andrea Byrne of ITV Cymru Wales and Welsh actor and presenter Elin Pavli-Hinde and streamed across ITV Cymru Wales’ Facebook Live and Twitter. 

A Newport woman and a Caerphilly woman were among the winners at the 2022 awards.

Zarah Kaleem, of Newport, won ‘community champion’ which was sponsored by Tiny Rebel.

South Wales Argus:

As a young woman from an ethnic minority background who has a learning disability, Ms Kaleem has worked hard to deliver training and awareness to schools and businesses after experiencing discrimination and judgement.

Meanwhile Katherine Axten, of Caerphilly, won ‘women in STEM award’ which was sponsored by the ABPI.

South Wales Argus:

Working as one of the only female DevOps engineers in a large company, Ms Axten has overcome prejudice and discrimination to become the skilled and successful software engineer she is today.

Women from elsewhere in Wales also scooped awards with the overall title of Womenspire Champion 2022 (and a 'rising star' award) accepted by Emily Nicole Roberts from Pontarddulais.

As a young woman with cerebral palsy Ms Roberts has worked hard to inspire, educate, and support others living with disabilities. She impressed the judges with her advocacy work and her humorous and informative ‘how to’ videos.

Full list of winners:

  • Community Connector award – sponsored by Mencap Cymru: Sophie Hinksman (Saundersfoot);
  • Entrepreneur award– sponsored by Development Bank of Wales: Maggie Ogunbanwo (Penygroes);
  • Gender Equality Champion award – sponsored by Academi Wales: Sarah-Jayne Bray (Port Talbot);
  • Community Champion – sponsored by Tiny Rebel: Zarah Kaleem (Newport);
  • Leader award – sponsored by Business in Focus: Siân Morgan (Carmarthen);
  • Learner award – sponsored by The Open University in Wales: Celsey Janes (Swansea);
  • Rising Star award – sponsored by Target Group: Emily Nicole Roberts (Pontarddulais);
  • Woman in Health and Care award – sponsored by HEIW: Kelly Clewett (Prestatyn);
  • Woman in Sport award – sponsored by Sport Wales: Vera Ngosi-Sambrook (Cardiff);
  • Woman in STEM award – sponsored by the ABPI: Katherine Axten (Caerphilly);
  • FairPlay Employer award (for a business or organisation) – sponsored by Hodge: The Open University in Wales.