BUSINESSES are being reminded that the deadline is fast approaching to enter the 2018 Oxfordshire Business Awards.

Entries for the awards opened following the launch last year at the Sadler Building at Oxford Science Park.

More than 100 people from the county’s business community gathered to back the 24th annual competition.

The awards ceremony itself will take place on Friday, June 15.

Hundreds of people will attend the black tie dinner, scheduled to place at Oxford Brookes University’s award-winning John Henry Brookes Building.

There are 13 individual award categories and all category winners have the chance to win The Hawkins Business of the Year award.

OXBA chairman Paul Lowe said: “There is now about a week to go until the deadline of Friday, March 2 so there is still time for companies to enter.

“Firms over the years have benefited greatly from winning the awards – it boosts their businesses and helps with recruitment.

“We want to remind firms that they need to enter the awards now and they can do this online through the website.

“More entries would be particularly welcome in the green and technology categories but we would like to see more entries across the board.”

It was a hat-trick of wins last year for Banbury-based construction firm Hawkins Group.

The firm won the NatWest Large Business Award, and group managing director Mike Hawkins was named the Shaw Gibbs Young Business Person of the Year, before the company won the Darke & Taylor Business of the Year Award at the end of the night.

A new hi-tech category has been created this year to bring in new entries.

The technology award has been backed by IT solutions company CIS.

The Faringdon-based company was established in 1989 specialising in IT solutions, services and consultancy.

The new award, called The CIS Technology Excellence Award, identifies and recognises an organisation’s focus on advancing its business through the use of information technology.

The Oxfordshire Business Awards is open for entries at oxfordshirebusinessawards.co.uk.

All entries must be submitted before the deadline of Friday, March 2.