Students bring home national awards in six categories

Students from Manchester Metropolitan University’s Manchester Fashion Institute have taken home top prizes at the prestigious Graduate Fashion Week Awards 2026, which highlight the very best in graduating talent.

The six winners were Catriona Lee for Fashion Communication Portfolio, Amina Jeng for Moving Image, Gareth Godfrey-Williams for Sportswear and Leisurewear, Charlotte Mansfield for Fashion Innovation, Olivia Baddoo for Project Pitch – Fashion Business, and Cerys Scott-Hobbs for the Graduate Fashion Foundation and Liberty Fabrics Competition.

The Graduate Fashion Week Awards, held annually during Graduate Fashion Week (June 12 – 15) are run by Graduate Fashion Foundation and are crucial for attracting industry interest.

Amina Jeng, BA (Hons) Fashion Art Direction, impressed the judges with her portfolio, part of which contained a section on Muslim Women in Sport, a direct response to the Muslimah Sports Association report which found that 97% of Muslim women wanted to increase their engagement in sport, but 37% were not involved in sport activities.

She said: “It’s about showing our stories as Muslim women who have grown up in sport. We brought together a team of Muslim women to produce the entire thing, so it was about showcasing our community and creating it together.”

Another winner was Cerys Scott-Hobbs, BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Technology, who won gold for the GFF Liberty Fabrics Competition, a competition designed to celebrate the 150-year anniversary of Liberty London and their Spring Summer ‘26 Floral Rebellion collection.

Scott-Hobbs used the theme of floral rebellion to focus on the impact of the Renaissance era on Scottish culture, introducing the theme through creative pattern-cutting, structure and volume. 

She said: “It was the first time I’ve seen my work on a runway model and have been able to see the way it moved. A big part of my design was the movement, but also the noise that it makes. The 3D prints and the way they all move together create an almost clan-sounding noise, which was really exciting to be able to hear on the catwalk.”

The winners also commented on how they were able to meet people within the industry at the events and to grow their professional network.

Dr Jo Jenkinson, Deputy Head of Manchester Fashion Institute, said: “It is wonderful to see our talented Manchester Fashion Institute students recognised in the GFW awards. The winners represent the breadth of our courses across fashion design, communications and business. The event provides valuable opportunities for students to showcase their work to industry professionals, in person. We are very proud of all of the students who took part in the awards and pitches this year.”

Graduate Fashion Week is a significant showcase of graduate fashion with over 95 of the most influential and inspiring UK and international universities on show. It showcases the work of more than 3500 of the very best fashion graduates each year. The event attracts a wide array of top industry professionals, press and recruiters from UK and abroad who use this opportunity to discover talent.

Jeng said: “It’s been such a journey. I’ve loved studying at Manchester Met and I’m going to miss it. Because of how broad Fashion Art Direction was and being able to explore so much, my final major project has been an accumulation of all these pathways. I don’t think I would be able to do anything that I’ve done here on another course.”