press release article

Dinah Bennett, Director and founder of Women Into the Network, & senior tutor at Durham Business School has been recognised for her outstanding work in supporting & promoting enterprise and entrepreneurship, with the highest honour that can be bestowed on a UK company or individual.

Dinah will be awarded an individual lifetime award, The Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion, which recognises outstanding contribution to the development and promotion of an enterprise culture.

The director of the networking initiative who has worked tirelessly over the last 20 years in the area of entrepreneurship and enterprise promotion, latterly with a focus on women’s enterprise development, will be honoured at a ceremony on 12th July at Buckingham Palace.

Beginning her career working on a Women's Development Programme in Sudan, Dinah joined the University of Durham Business School’s, Foundation for SME Development, as it was then known, as a Research Associate responsible for the research programme into Market Development in the Independent Growth Firm. The results of this research have led to the development of two BBC TV programmes and relationship management courses for bankers. Dinah also co-authored the book Hallmarks of Successful Business. Women Into the Network have received two European awards for Best Practice.

On receiving the honour, Dinah said: "I'm delighted to be awarded with this. I feel enormously privileged to work in an arena that I am passionate about and which brings me into contact with inspirational people whom I admire. I have also been lucky to work with and learn from some great people including, Professor Allan Gibb, the ‘godfather’ of small business and who set Europe’s first ever small business centre here in the North East”

Patricia Hewitt, The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry & Minister for Women and Equality, recently visited Durham Business School and the WIN initiative and said, “Durham’s becoming a real centre of excellence for encouraging the entrepreneurial spirit among women. I’m delighted to see the great work they are doing and the encouragement they are giving to our future entrepreneurs”.