The Sewell Group, which operates 12 forecourts under its Sewell on the go division, has been honoured for the second time with a royal award for creating social mobility within its communities.
The business, which operates petrol stations across Hull and East Yorkshire, has been bestowed with a King’s Award for Enterprise for Promoting Opportunity.
It recognises Sewell’s GATEway initiative that aims to help people from disadvantaged backgrounds into work through graduate opportunities, apprenticeships, trainee schemes, work experience and advocacy.
Since launching, the programme has supported over 300 individuals to access work placements within the company, and of those 69% from disadvantaged backgrounds have gone on to secure further education, employment or training.
Patrick Sewell, managing director of Sewell on the go, says the business wanted to do something to help after Hull was ranked as the fourth most deprived city in the UK after the pandemic, with high levels of unemployment and skills gaps in key industries.
“Our approach to business has always been to enrich local communities and create opportunities for people, so we came up with the GATEway programme to help focus our efforts,” says Sewell.
The Hull-based Top 50 Indie has long-standing partnerships with schools and colleges across the region, and collaborates with local charities including CatZero and Hull for Heroes to provide work placements for local people who would otherwise struggle to find employment.
Sewell says: “Partnering with organisations such as CatZero, we’ve been able to reach people that need the most support and provide meaningful opportunities for them that have led to further employment. Our strategy is all about creating better life chances for people and social mobility within our communities. We’re a big believer that skills can be taught, we recruit based on attitude and cultural fit.”
19-year-old Zayla Hutchinson is among those who have benefited. After taking a work placement with Sewell on the go as part of the company’s partnership with CatZero she was quickly offered a trainee sales assistant role.
Reflecting on the opportunity, Zayla says: “I met someone from CatZero at the job centre who gave me the opportunity to join their programme which helped me get my GCSEs and built my confidence. From there I got the chance to do work experience at Sewell on the go and I got a lot of compliments from colleagues and customers. Then one day the manager asked if I’d like a full time job and I said yes straightaway.”
It is the second time that the Sewell Group has been given royal recognition. In 2021 it received a Queen’s Award for its continued commitment and advocacy of social mobility within the business community.
The King’s Award will be presented by HM Lord-Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire, Mr. Jim Dick, OBE. He says:
“I am delighted to congratulate Sewell Group on winning the 2026 King’s Award for Enterprise in the Promoting Opportunities through Social Mobility category. To be recognised again, following their Queen’s Award in 2021 in the same category, is a remarkable testament to their sustained commitment to inclusion, skills and development. The Sewell Group continue to make a meaningful difference to people’s lives and set an inspiring example of how businesses can create lasting social and economic impact in our region.”
Over the past few years, the group has also supported military veterans, pupils from a local school and other young people with special educational needs and disabilities, developing a toolkit for other employers to help encourage them to take on more work experience placements.
Sewell Group’s ‘grow your own’ mentality has seen many people come up through the ranks of the business from trainee to senior roles, with 23 out of 24 of its senior team and managers starting on the shop floor.
The King’s Awards for Enterprise are now in their 60th year. Successful organisations may use the King’s Awards Emblem for five years, signalling excellence to customers, partners, and global markets.
