Celebrating the Purpose-Led Podcast of the Year Finalists

Jun 20

Purpose-Led Podcast of the Year Finalists 2025

This year, we’re proud to spotlight purpose-led podcast – shows created around a clear mission to inspire, educate, and empower their audiences. Each podcast and their host uses the power of audio storytelling to share insight, spark meaningful conversation, and drive positive change.

Shelley Hayward - Lincslives natters

About:
Shelley is a podcast producer, editor, and the creative force behind Lincs Lives Natters, a platform dedicated to elevating the voices and stories of Lincolnshire. Armed with dry wit, genuine compassion, and a lifelong love of community, she helps people find the confidence to speak up and share what matters to them.

Reason for Shortlisting:
Shelley’s shortlisting centres on the kitchen-table podcast she built. Drawing on a background in community radio, she taught herself every digital skill from audio editing to SEO and turned a second-hand mic into a platform for unheard voices: carers, neurodivergent creatives, grassroots activists, small-business owners and everyday heroes. Her episodes have boosted local brands, inspired first-time public speakers and created vital networks of support. Shelley has created more than a podcast; she’s built a growing network of local storytellers, small businesses, and community champions.

Heather Pownall - Heather's Media Hub

About:
Heather is an award-winning digital-communications strategist and founder of Heather’s Media Hub. Drawing on 25 years in publishing and membership media, she now helps healthcare, tech, research and professional bodies modernise their digital presence, from podcast production to end-to-end content and membership systems.

Reason for Shortlisting:
Heather’s entry stood out for turning podcasting into a genuine engine of health-care change. In less than five years she has launched and produced six purpose-led series, but 2024’s The Rest Is Kidneys shows her full strategic power: she challenged an NHS team to move from a closed local audio guide to an open-access show, crafted the brand and distribution strategy, and within six months the podcast was charting on six continents, embedded in medical school curricula, and adopted by Medicast in the Netherlands. Backed by a contract extension for further episodes, the project is now cited inside the NHS as a model for future communication. .

Angela Kingdon - The Autistic Culture Podcast

About:
Dr Angela Kingdon is a bestselling author, award-nominated podcast host, and founder of the Autistic Culture Institute. Blending 25 years in communications with lived experience, she reframes autism as a vibrant culture, rather than a disorder. Angela co-produces and co-hosts The Autistic Culture Podcast, where she explores identity, joy, and systemic challenges through research-driven conversations. Also a psychology researcher at the University of Kent, Angela continues to create content that informs, empowers, and connects autistic people worldwide.

Reason for Shortlisting:
Angela’s Autistic Culture Podcast earned its shortlist spot because it flips the script on autism. The twice-weekly podcast blends research-backed insight, humour, and uncompromising honesty, reaching 300,000 downloads and 10,000 subscribers. Episodes tackle everything from masking and burnout to Taylor Swift fandom, and provides clinicians and allies with a rigorous, trauma-informed resource now used in training programmes and university courses. With companion tools, accessible transcripts, and active community co-creation, Angela isn’t just raising awareness – she’s building the cultural infrastructure autistic people have long been denied.

Nicky Elliott - The Wilder Collective Ltd

About:
Nicky is a podcaster, speaker, and the founder of The Wilder Collective. After 15 years in events, she launched a unisex clothing brand in 2021 and, along the way, met countless inspiring women building businesses on their own terms. Wanting to amplify those voices, she created the podcast Women’s Business, where female founders share honest stories that challenge the double standards and internalised misogyny holding women back.

Reason for Shortlisting:
Nicky’s podcast has grown from a passion project into a genuine force for change. With more than 22,000 listens to date, it holds a 100% five-star rating on Apple and Spotify and was shortlisted at the International Women’s Podcast Awards. On-air she mixes headline names with grassroots founders to prove that success is possible for any woman on her own terms. Off-air she turns that inspiration into action through The Wilder Collective, a fast-growing community where female founders find practical support and candid conversation.

Danielle Meadows-Stinnett - More Than Graphics Podcast

About:
Danielle is the co-creator and executive producer of More Than Graphics, a purpose-led podcast that serves as a virtual safe space for women and minorities in tech and the creative industries. Alongside co-hosts Cicely and Priscilla, she curates frank, insightful conversations that “put it all on the table,” inviting emerging talents and established thought leaders to share lived experiences.

Reason for Shortlisting:
Danielle and More Than Graphics earned its shortlist spot for that fact it does more than amplify under-represented voices; it encourages listeners to confront the mental and emotional roadblocks that can limit professional growth. Each episode blends storytelling with practical strategies. By championing authenticity and community, this podcast is a go-to resource for anyone seeking both inspiration and a deeper sense of belonging in the tech and creative arenas.

The Digital Women Awards are proud to celebrate these extraordinary individuals.