Cork’s Donkey Sanctuary leaves judges ‘blown away’

One of Cork’s most beloved animal charities has won an award for the positive environment it has created for its human staff.

The Donkey Sanctuary Ireland has been honoured at a prestigious HR awards ceremony for the second year in a row. The Cork-based charity scooped the award for Embedding a culture of Workplace Wellbeing from HR body CIPD in Ireland at Dublin’s Mansion House.

The charity in Liscarrol received a Special Commendation prize at the ceremony in 2024, but the team was celebrating as the outright winners in the category this time around at the HR industry’s most prestigious awards event. Organisers select categories each year to reflect the core areas of work of the people profession, as well as current trends that affect HR.

Director of CIPD in Ireland Mary Connaughton says the Donkey Sanctuary team put together a really impressive entry.

“The panel were blown away by the quality of the HR leadership whose approach was rooted in practical yet insightful reality. They built a culture that matched the commitment to donkey care with the commitment to care for each other. The judges found it very genuine and heartfelt, building on their 2024 achievement in these awards.

“Overall, the range of award winners this year reflects the diversity of organisations where the people profession and its skills are so highly valued and respected. The HR profession is continually growing in stature in Irish enterprise. At a time when transformation is the main constant in workplaces, our members perform a vital role and occasions such as this are the perfect opportunity to recognise their efforts,” she added.