The awards honour the exceptional talent, innovation and resilience that define small and medium-sized businesses across the capital.

The competition was open to firms with up to 250 employees, with businesses invited to enter into 21 categories which ranged from Best Entrepreneur and Community Business to Best Young Business Leader and Exporter of the Year. Shortlisted finalists competed for gold or silver in their respective categories, with one overall winner chosen – this year the accolade went to LCCI member Nockolds. The Soho Theatre Company won the Community Business Award – see feature on page 10.

The black tie ceremony showcased the impact SMEs continue to have on the UK’ s capital city. Guests enjoyed a vibrant networking drinks reception, a three course dinner, standout performances from Encore Entertainment and speeches from LCCI chief executive Karim Fatehi OBE and Taryn Robertson of Headline Sponsor HSBC. Jess Bayford from Charity Sponsor

Hospices of Hope also took to the stage and hosted a raffle that raised more than £ 2,500 in support of the charity’ s work.

The energy in the room was electric. Commenting on the event, LCCI chief executive Karim Fatehi OBE said:“ These awards are about more than recognition; they are a celebration of the determination, leadership and forward thinking that power our business community every day. From emerging enterprises to established leaders, the calibre of talent and innovation on display is truly inspiring. It is fantastic to see so many organisations and individuals pushing boundaries, embracing change, and making a positive impact across our capital’ s diverse sectors and communities.

“ Nights like this give us the opportunity to pause, reflect and applaud those achievements in the face of a challenging business environment. My congratulations go to everyone involved; your success stories not only deserve recognition but also motivate others to aim higher and continue building a strong and thriving London economy, which in turn benefits the wider UK.”

Nockolds, the law firm and provider of independent financial advice, were crowned overall winnner and will head to the National SME Awards later this year.

The sponsors of the LCCI SME London Business Awards were:

• HSBC – headline sponsor

• Menzies – Platinum

• Bell Stone, Edwin Coe, Etihad Airways, grenke, RBC Brewin Dolphin, OCN, Luton Rising, Penta Consulting, Scholars School Systems, and Weightmans – Gold.

For more pictures of the LCCI SME Business Awards celebrations and a full list of the winners, see page 69.

AI working groups are springing up That’ s a good thing. AI is no longer e It reduces manual effort, sharpens

But with that opportunity comes real responsibility. And without proper governance, things go wrong.

Take West Midlands Police. AI-generated evidence referencing a non-existent football match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and West Ham- a hallucination produced by Microsoft Copilot- was used to help justify banning away supporters from a fixture. The fallout reached the Home Affairs Select Committee, and Microsoft Copilot access was subsequently suspended across WMP systems.

This is exactly why working groups matter. But a group that only meets to talk about AI isn’ t enough. If months pass with no decisions, no direction, and no meaningful change( sound familiar?) then the group is failing.

A successful AI working group isn’ t a consultation forum. It’ s a mechanism for action.

What does one actually look like? 1. A clear purpose tied to organisational priorities Define why the group exists. Strong remits include: assessing AI use cases, conducting risk assessments, developing policy, owning the AI strategy, and sponsoring responsible adoption. Critically, this must connect to your organisation’ s broader mission; whether that’ s improving public services, driving innovation, or strengthening resilience.

AI activity alignment

2. Action-o meetings, conversat Credibility outcomes, Track wha adopted, a More impo group eno to act. AI m for a group recommen months for off. Delega for lower-r and pilots, guardrails

3. Prioritis problems Don’ t start

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International

New research by the British Chambers of Commerce( BCC) Insights Unit, involving over 2,400 exporters, shows overseas exports have fallen dramatically in the second quarter

The survey, carried out in May and June found that just 16 per cent of exporters reported an increase in export orders, while 26 per cent reported a fall, and 58 per cent reported no change. This was a significant drop on Q1 of 2026, when a quarter of exporters reported increased orders.

The size of a firm also played a role with just 11 per cent of micro-exporters, with fewer than 10 employees, reporting increased export orders in Q2( 18 per cent in Q1). In contrast, 26 per cent of large exporters, with more than 250 staff, saw a boost in overseas orders.

Disruption

The picture is substantially different to the performance before Brexit, Covid, the war in Ukraine, US tariffs and geopolitical disruption. In Q2 2018, 31 per cent of all firms saw increased export orders and 14 per cent a decrease.

Substantial hit

William Bain, BCC head of trade policy, commented:“ Exporters of all sectors and sizes have taken a substantial hit to their overseas orders as the impact of Brexit, tariffs, the Iran war and cost pressures have combined.

“ No business sector is immune. But it’ s a growing concern that services firms, which have been the backbone of our export growth since Brexit, are facing a real fight to boost overseas interest.

Trade agreements

“ If the new Prime Minister is serious about delivering growth, then increasing the UK’ s exports must be central to that drive. The current administration has been successful in landing a string of trade deals, but the pipeline is starting to empty. Chamber businesses want to see a new set of free trade agreements which focus on Mercosur, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand.

EU reset

“ The government must also boost export support and shift more trade processes online to simplify the

bureaucracy. Making quick and concrete progress on the EU reset should also be a priority. That means securing deals on food and drink exports, agreeing a youth experience programme, reintegrating our electricity markets and linking our schemes on greenhouse gas emissions.”

www. britishchambers. org. uk

How LBM covered the 2026 SME London Business Awards

8 Features

Night of celebration and inspiration

Exceptional

Impact

Electric

Achievements

From‘ AI Wor Working Gro