East Midlands Finance Awards
Thursday 19th June 2025, 6:30 – 11:30pm
Nottingham Contemporary, City Centre, NG1
The East Midlands Finance Awards are back and this year, we’re pulling out all the stops to celebrate our 5th anniversary!
Discover more about EMFA below, including details of our sponsor, judging panel and what past attendees have to say.
Join us for a truly unforgettable evening as we mark this milestone with a night of celebration like never before.
At Distinct, we believe the East Midlands is the best place in the UK to build a thriving finance career. Founded in 2019, EMFA is the only event dedicated to honoring finance professionals across the region. Over the years, we’ve proudly celebrated their achievements and resilience in supporting businesses through tight deadlines and economic challenges.
This year’s event goes beyond the awards ceremony, offering incredible live entertainment and music, photo opportunities and plenty of delicious food and drink. EMFA is a wonderful chance for local businesses and finance peers to come together, show appreciation for their teams and enjoy a well-deserved night of fun. You won’t want to miss it…
2025 award categories
Entries are now closed. Read on to learn more about this year’s awards.
Finance Leader of the year
This is a fantastic opportunity to recognise an inspirational Finance Leader; celebrating their outstanding contribution to their business and/or teams over the past 12 months.
Finance team of the year (less than 10 staff)
Open to finance teams with fewer than 10 staff that have achieved excellence in providing financial support to any business or business area, in either the private or public sector.
Finance team of the year (more than 10 staff)
Open to finance teams of 10 or more staff that support any business or business area, providing first-class financial support and insight in either the public or private sector.
Rising star
Open to individuals at any level, with any number of years experience, from QBE through to part-qual or qualified. The winner of this award will have fantastic examples of going above and beyond, showing truly exceptional promise for their future finance career.
Unsung hero
This award is for that person your team relies on to make everything run well – and who truly deserves a moment in the spotlight. Whether it’s in the ledger team, credit control, payroll, FP&A or anywhere in finance.
Our event sponsors
We are proud to reveal that Dains Accountants are our headline sponsor for 2025! Established in 1926, Dains is an independent firm of chartered accountants and business advisors, dedicated to supporting SME business growth. Their intrinsic values align well with Distinct’s people-centric ethos, making this partnership a perfect fit.
Our judging panel
Distinct remains completely impartial in the selection of all EMFA award winners. We use this unique opportunity to form a small panel of external judges, consisting of business leaders and industry contributors. Each award category has a unique panel of judges, who have all been announced on our LinkedIn page.
Further information can also be found in the “How are nominations judged?” section of our FAQ below.
The night’s entertainment
Illusionist
Get ready to be amazed as Royal Variety performer Dean Odell, takes centre stage with an interactive show. His reality-bending illusions and jaw-dropping mind-reading tricks are sure to surprise, fascinate and entertain.
Live music
Local East Midlands band, The Burgundys will be performing live throughout the evening. With an eclectic mix of hits spanning the decades, they’re guaranteed to get and keep your team dancing all night.
Hear from previous attendees
“This was our first time attending the EMFA, having been short-listed for the Finance team of the year >10 staff. We had a fantastic evening, the event was well organised and the venue was a great choice! We hope to be back again in the future!” – Emelie Fagrell-Elliott, Manager, Credit & Collections, Xylem Water Solutions.
“Receiving the ‘Unsung hero’ award at the East Midlands Finance Awards 2024 was a lovely surprise. Thank you to my finance leadership team for the nomination, and to Distinct for creating the opportunity for recognition, for the unsung heroes!” – Helen Evans, Senior Finance Business Partner, Molson Coors.
“It was an absolutely brilliant evening and so well organised by Distinct. We had lots of fun and were able to celebrate all of the exceptional talent that the East Midlands region has to offer.“ – Danny Baker, Head of Finance, Nottinghamshire Police.
“It was fantastic to spend the evening with the East Midlands finance community, to celebrate and to hear about so many success stories across so many varied businesses and organisations.” – Neil Musgrove, Finance Director, Experian.
Your FAQs
What are the entry guidelines?
Entries are now closed. We wish nominees the very best of luck!
How do I nominate someone for an award?
Simply fill in the form at the bottom of the page. Your nomination will be shared with our panel of judges after the closing date.
How are nominations judged?
Distinct play no part whatsoever in the judging of any nominations for the EMFA. We’re proud to partner with a range of distinguished event partners (previously including HSBC, the ICAEW and the East Midlands Chamber of Commerce) who take on the unenviable task of judging all nominations.
Our event partners usually work in pairs to judge one-to-two award categories each, working to an agreed judging model to ascertain who they believe are the worthy winners & runners up. This judging model typically involves a meeting to understand each nomination with the individual, team, person that nominated for the award.
When do I find out the results?
Winners & Runners Up are announced on the night itself.
Where can I purchase tickets?
Tickets are now sold out – we’re looking forward to celebrating with you all on 19th June!
What’s the dress code?
Imagine you going for dinner & cocktails with your friends on a Saturday night. No bow-ties or black tie, we want you to be comfortable and enjoy the occasion – one particular award winner attended wearing shorts & flip-flops!
If you have any other questions regarding the East Midlands Finance Awards, reach out to our lead organiser, Henry Clarkson.
