TWO Black History Month awards were given to the Cumbria, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW), a provider of mental health and disability services.

The awards came from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Northern Yorkshire and the Humber, celebrating individuals or organisations who positively impact equality.

The Trust’s team of cultural ambassadors won the Team Award and CNTW won the Organisation Award.

READ MORE: Shop announces closure "due to less people choosing to shop in the town centre"

Cultural Ambassadors were appointed after the revelation a disproportionate number of staff from ethnic minorities entered formal disciplinary processes compared to white staff.

The ambassadors are trained, ensuring cultural aspects of these cases are raised and challenged throughout the process.

The Trust won the organisation award for working to identify and address equality issues in recruiting.

Edith Russell, a cultural ambassador, says: “The award and recognition for our contribution to making CNTW a better place to work for everyone means a lot but there is still plenty of work to do to close the gap between the number of white staff and staff from ethnic minorities staff going through formal processes."