The winner of the Employer of the Year award, sponsored by Pure Executive and Birketts, was Access Community Trust.

Access Community Trust is a charity based out of Lowestoft that aims to provide support to individuals and communities that are socially isolated across Suffolk and beyond.

From starting as a homeless shelter in 1975, the non-profit has grown to employ more than 200 people. Assisting over 30,000 people through its charitable offering.

Judges applauded how values are embedded across the organisation, including new employees. The organisation feels inclusive, and despite the barriers of funding they face as a charity, they’ve already achieved fantastic ‘wins’ for the people they help.

“The Employer of the Year award is always a coveted category, with businesses keen to celebrate the importance of their most valuable assets – their people,” says judge Becky Wilson, Business Director at Pure Executive.

“We’re so pleased to celebrate with Access Community Trust. Throughout the judging process, it was clear that they recognised that employee engagement creates happier, healthier, and more loyal employees. And that building a strong, stable, and resilient workforce is an essential element for their future.”

Finalists included:

• Chestnut
• Gressingham Foods
• Orwell Housing Association

Watch the highlights from the 2022 Suffolk Business Awards: