Nuclear Institute Awards and Prizes

The Nuclear Institute is proud to honour excellence and innovation in the nuclear field through various awards and prizes, including: The Pinkerton Prize, the European Nuclear Society PhD Award and the Young Generation Network Prizes.

Volunteer Awards 2026

The Nuclear Institute Volunteer Awards recognise exceptional voluntary contributions to NI activities. An independent Awards Panel will oversee nominations, ensuring fairness and adherence to criteria.

Eligibility & Key Rules

Open to: NI members, YGN/SIG volunteers, Assessors, Branch, Special Interest Groups, NI Committees and (for Prizes) non-members where specified.
Volunteer Awards: Must be for unpaid contributions. Paid work is ineligible.
Self-nominations: Only permitted for the Pinkerton Prize
Confidentiality: Merit-based nominations (e.g. Volunteer of the Year) must not be disclosed to the nominee.

Please refer to the Guidelines for further details.

Timeline

Nominations Open: 1st June

Deadline: 24th July

Winners Announced: August

Ceremony: 23rd September (Crewe Hall)

NOMINATE

GUIDELINES

Volunteer Awards 2025

Most Outstanding Advocate: Robert Alford FNucI
Excellence in Advocacy of EDI: Alanna Downing
Young Leader of the Year: Jordan Hall MNucI
YGN Prize for Outstanding Contribution: Saralyn Thomas MNucI
NI Volunteer of the Year: Lacey- Jo Marsland MNucI, Alan Davies MNucI
Lifetime Achievement Award: Professor Laurence Williams OBE FREng FNucI
YGN Early Careers Competition: Rutendo Madhlambudzi

2025 Awards ceremony

Lifetime Achievement Winner: Professor Laurence Williams OBE

Pinkerton Prize

The Pinkerton Prize, awarded in memory of JB Pinkerton, recognises authors and co-authors of articles of significant technical or scientific merit published in the Nuclear Institute’s bi-monthly Nuclear Future journal. JB (John Brownlie) Pinkerton was the founder of the Institution of Nuclear Engineers (INucE). The INucE was one of the predecessor organisations that eventually formed the Nuclear Institute.

2024 Winner: Carol Tansley

2023 Winner: Dr Alastair Baker

Winners

2025 - Richard Piggin: Enhancing Civil Nuclear Cyber Security
2024 - Carol Tansley: 'Potential for Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) to Improve Performance on Nuclear Megaprojects: Part I and II'
2023 – Alastair Baker, Andrea De Santis, Alex Fells, Timothy N. Hunter, Bruce C. Hanson, Chris Maher, Rob Taylor: 'The development of centrifugal contractors'
2022 – Paul Nevitt, Meridith Sherock, Emma Vernon – ‘Fuelling Net Zero’
2021 – Clara Lloyd, Robbie Lyons, Tony Roulstone FNucI: ‘Expanding Nuclear’s Contribution to Climate Change with SMRs’
2020 – Robin Taylor and Gemma Mathers:'Innovation in the aqueous recycling of spent nuclear fuels’
2019 – Mike Davies: ‘The qualification of candidate graphites for future high-temperature gas-cooled reactors’
2018 - Harry Edwards, Andrew Jackson, Adam Locke: ‘Modular Civils for Modular Reactors’
2017 - Reuben Holmes, Massimiliano Materazzi, and Brandon Gallagher: ‘Magnox Reprocessing TDN Reactors: Utilising 3D Printing to Re-Design and Test Fluidising Air Nozzles’
2016 - Richard Crawford: ‘Lessons from the Graphite Core Project’
2015 - Michelle Nuttall: ‘Criticality aspects of the transport of legacy spent fuels’
2014 - Jim Thomson FNucI: ‘Fukushima and its consequences’
2012 - Michael Angus: ‘Encapsulation Options for Decommissioning Waste’
2011 - Bahram Ghiassee: 'Strategic Siting Assessment'
2010 - Tony Walker, Alan Stevens, Tracey Cool: Use of Monte-Carlo methods to derive quantitative probability of defect detection data
2009 - Alain Zaetta, Frederic Varaine, Robert Jacqmin & Dominic Warin: 'Transmutation of long-lived waste in fast and thermal spectrum reactors'

European Nuclear Society PhD Award: UK Nominations

The European Nuclear Society (ENS) organises an annual Award to recognize an outstanding PhD thesis work. The ENS High Scientific Council (HSC) acts as the Selection Committee, and the Nuclear Institute, as the UK Member of the ENS, nominates the UK candidate for this prestigious award. UK candidates will be assessed by an NI team headed by Professor Laurence G Williams OBE FREng FNucI, a member of the ENS High Scientific Council. The successful candidate will become the UK Nominee for the HSC PhD award.

European Nuclear Society

Winners

2026 - Dr Connor Beer, University of Liverpool "Effect of Microstructure and Energy Deposition on Radiation-Induced Modifications in Zirconium Nitride: A Framework for Accelerated Qualification of Advanced Nuclear Fuels".

Previous Winners

2025 - Dr Sebastian Davies, University of Liverpool "Coupling of Subchannel Tools with Advanced Multiscale Core Simulations"

2024 - Dr Elizabeth Sharp, NNL "Development of an NDT method for pressure monitoring of special nuclear material containment”

2023 - Dr Matthew Lukacs, UKAEA. "Development of a Regulatory Framework for the Licensing of a Fusion Power Plant."

2022 - Dr Liberato Volpe. “High Temperature Oxidation Studies of Ni-base Alloys: Understanding the Role of the “Precursor Events” during the Early Stages of Stress Corrosion Cracking”

2020 - Dr Steph Thornber, NNL “The development of high fraction zirconolite glass-ceramics for the immobilisation of actinides in plutonium residues for long-term geological disposal” - Steph went on to be named winner of the overall ENS PhD Award.

Young Generation Network Prizes

The NI Young Generation Network awards two prizes annually, presented at the YGN Annual Dinner and the NI Awards Ceremony respectively.

YGN Excellence Prize

The YGN Excellence Prize is an award for newcomers to the Nuclear Industry (less than five years’ nuclear experience) who have gone above and beyond the roles required of them. There is a specific emphasis on the individual’s achievement to promote the nuclear industry and fulfilment of the YGN Mission. The award is an attempt to recognise these individuals and their accomplishments over their brief time within the industry.

Winners

2025: Omal Jayawardena

2024: Lucy Jarvis

2023: Evie Smith

2022: Nicole Lee

2021: Nicole Tait

2020: Philippa Hawley

2019: Stacy Snook

2018: Reuben Holmes

2017: Bethany McKee

2024 Winner: Lucy Jarvis, Sellafield Ltd.

2023 Winner: Evie Smith

YGN Outstanding Contribution Prize

The YGN Prize for Outstanding Contribution is awarded annually to a senior figure in the nuclear sector whose great support to young people in the industry, primarily through the YGN Network, has gone above and beyond expectations. The YGN relies on the support of the prize winners and their peers in order to continue to deliver its portfolio of events, thus together, ensuring a bright future for nuclear energy.

2024 Winner: Beccy Pleasant

2023 Winner: Corhyn Parr HonFNucI

Winners

2025 - Saralyn Thomas MNucI

Previous Winners

2024 - Beccy Pleasant

2023 - Corhyn Parr HonFNucI

2022 - Professor Andrew Sherry FNucI

2021 - John McNamara

2020 – Alys Gardner

2019 – Professor John Fyfe

2018 – Mark Gardiner MNucI

2017 – Jon Baggs

2016 – Steve Barnes

2015 – Greg Willets

2014 – Dennis Thompson

2013 – Gareth Davies

2012 – David Powell

2011 – Adrian Bull HonFNucI

2010 – Neil Blundell

2009 – Ian Currie FNucI

2008 – Carl Dawson

2007 – Tub Aves

2006 – Dame Sue Ion OBE

2005 – George Jenkins

YGN Speaking Competition

The Nuclear Institute's Young Generation Network (YGN) holds a speaking competition to encourage and showcase the talents of young professionals in the nuclear industry. The competition features regional heats, leading to a national final, where winners have the opportunity to present at the YGN Annual Seminar and Dinner. The national final is held during Nuclear Week.

2024 Winner: Becky Hicks, North West Branch

2023 Winner: Hannah Thompson, North West Branch

Winners

2025 - Reuben Bouchard-Saunders, Cumbria Branch - The energy of emotion: nuclear power in a fissioned world

2024 - Becky Hicks, North West Branch - The Importance of Human Factors in Supporting Nuclear Safety Cases

2023 - Hannah Thompson, North West Branch - 7 Year Itch: Perspective of an Industry Returner on Nuclear Gender Balance Progress

2022 - David Eastwell, Central England Branch - Seismic Surveying: using sound to map the Earth's Structure, and why we use it in geological waste disposal

2021 - Steve Smith, Scotland Branch - Hydrogen Advancing the Nuclear Industry from Carbon Neutral to Carbon Negative