Last month, Team LEaF had a fantastic day out in Leeds, where we attended our first awards ceremony. We were thrilled to have been shortlisted for the 2023 FSB sustainability Award for the Yorkshire and the Humber and couldn’t wait to attend the event and celebrate with the other finalists.
We began our day co-working at If…Up North – the perfect place for an informal team meeting or co-working session. Although we were slightly distracted by the delicious bakes on offer, we had a productive morning and were surprised to find that a couple of hours had actually felt like a couple of minutes. As they say, time flies when you’re having fun!
After we were satiated and the creative juices were flowing, we headed to the newly refurbished Queens Hotel, which was hosting the awards. There was a buzzing atmosphere upon our arrival and it was great to share the experience with some familiar faces representing other York businesses.

It was great to meet so many other fantastic businesses and we were truly inspired by some of the stories which were shared. We were particularly impressed with Children’s Corner Childcare who were nominated for two of the awards and were the well-deserved winners of the Service Excellent Award. A family business who not only provide excellent childcare but also put the needs of families at the heart of what they do. We were so impressed with what they offer that we came away from the awards feeling motivated and keen to consider ways in which we can do more to help our local community.
Although we didn’t win our category, it was a privilege to be amongst so many other brilliant small business and we thoroughly enjoyed the awards. Congratulations to Tong Garden Centre, worthy winners of the Sustainability Award, as well as all the other winners.
We left feeling proud to have been part of such a great event and motivated to go one step further next time round!