Over 400 people turned out for the glamorous Merseyside Women of the Year awards to see local women being rewarded for their success.

The lunch, held at the Crowne Plaza was organised by Women in Business NW and was a showcase of the women who have inspired the region. The champagne was flowing and the celebrations continued at Restaurant Bar and Grill at an after party.

Merseyside Woman of the Year 2014:

Sarah Lawton

Elaine Owen at Women in business NW said:

“The idea of the awards, which are now in their 12th year, is to inspire other women in the region and to bring those women together to celebrate their successes.

“We would like to thank all of the sponsors who really help in supporting the event and a special thank you to our host Pauline Daniels.

“Congratulations to all of our winners, they truly deserve the recognition and I hope they all enjoyed the afternoon as much as we did.”

Other winners:

• Entrepreneur

Winner – Denise Harris

Runner up – Melissa Goddard

• Merseyside Media Ambassador

Winner – Claire Sweeney

Runner up – Lyn Saunders

• Women Achieving

Winner – Julie Taylor

Runner up – Ann McCann

• Best Business Start Up

Winner – Shelagh Picton

Runner up – Ingrid Spiegl

• Community

Winner – Sara Lawton

Runner up – Sharon Williams

• Caring

Winner – Maddy Vaz

Runner up – Jayne Hughes

• Inspirational Woman

Winner – Roz Vaughan

Runner up – Joan Brennan

• Special Award

Winner – Margaret Aspinall

• Learning

Winner – Carol Rogers

Runner up – Wendy Kinnin

• Arts & Culture

Winner – Jan McVerry

Runner up – Su Grainger

• Women of Courage

Winner – Marie Causer

Winner – Denise Fergus

Winner- Frances Molloy

• Women of Philanthropy

Winner – Joanne Davis

Runner up – Sarah McKenzie

• Best Supporting Male

Steve MacFarlane

• Pride of Merseyside

Pauline Daniels

The event teamed up with Radio City Cash for Kids, who provide a helping hand to disabled and disadvantaged children in Liverpool and the surrounding areas and Liverpool JMU to provide financial support to students in their final year.

Headline sponsors were Michael W Halsall Solicitors and category sponsors included International Festival of Business, local wealth management firm, Quilter Cheviot and Ramptec.