One-Eighty Named Oxfordshire Business of the Year 2025
A double win at the Oxfordshire Business Awards
One-Eighty has been named Oxfordshire Business of the Year 2025, the highest honour of the night at this year’s Oxfordshire Business Awards.
We also took home Employer of the Year (sponsored by Hays), a category we were especially proud to win among such a strong field of corporate finalists. As a previous finalist, we’ve worked hard to deliver on our promises: investing in staff development, embedding meaningful wellbeing initiatives, and creating clear pathways for progression. We’ve continued to grow as an organisation focusing on a high performance culture that puts people and purpose at the heart of everything we do.
To come away with both awards is an incredible honour and a huge moment for us as a small but growing, mission-led organisation.
Our Founder and CEO, Susie Besant, who received the award at the ceremony on Thursday, shared:
“Being recognised as Employer of the Year is a huge honour. It reflects the care, investment, and culture we’ve worked hard to build over the past 14 years. We’re committed to continuing to nurture a workplace where people can thrive, grow, and make a lasting impact.
And winning Business of the Year? That’s something else entirely. It’s not just about walking up on stage to accept the prize - it’s about what the recognition means to us – acknowledging the hard work, immense dedication of every team member, and taking bold steps to achieve our vision, ensuring that every young person has access to the support they need.”
In announcing the award, Darke & Taylor - sponsors of the prestigious Business of the Year category, said:
“The judges were blown away not only by the dedication that their people had to doing this, but their passion and pride as an organisation itself. The organisation clearly values its people, and has found innovative ways to support career development and learning, and has a number of people who have been able to develop and grow their careers there. The work that the team undertakes can at times be hard, and the organisation is continually looking for ways to support the staff through wellbeing programmes and flexible working.”
We were also proud finalists for the Charity & Community Award (sponsored by Greatest Hits Radio) and extend our warmest congratulations to Waste2Taste – worthy winners doing incredible work in the local community.
The Oxfordshire Business Awards celebrate innovation, impact, and leadership across the region. We’re deeply grateful to Darke & Taylor, Hays, Bauer Media, and the wider OXBA team for their support and for giving us this platform to share our story.
This recognition is a powerful validation of how we’re growing as an organisation, not just to do more, but to do even better for the young people we exist for. With over 20,000 young people in Oxfordshire missing or persistently absent from school, our mission remains urgent. We’re focused on expanding our reach, deepening our impact and continuing to invest in the incredible team who make this work possible.
We’re more committed than ever to reach the young people who need us most and to build the future they deserve.
If you want to know more about One-Eighty and how you can support our vision, contact our Founder and CEO Susie at susie.besant@one-eighty.org.uk
