We’re thrilled to share that Wildbird Web Design has picked up wins in two categories at the 18th edition of the Web Excellence Awards, one of the web design industry’s leading international competitions. A brilliant way to mark our launch!
The Web Excellence Awards recognise outstanding work across web design, development, digital marketing, and mobile applications, and serve as a global benchmark for creative agencies, designers, and developers. This year’s competition was fiercely contested, with the 2026 season attracting more than 1,750 entries from over 50 countries across five continents, so to come away with two wins means a great deal to us.
Human-led design, built right here in Cumbria
We’re based in Cumbria, and we design, develop, host, and maintain websites and e-commerce platforms for businesses across the UK. Our approach pairs designer-quality websites with genuinely people-focused support. We create websites that are optimised for, but never created by, AI platforms such as ChatGPT and Gemini.
We launched Wildbird as its own platform because we kept noticing two things: how central digital is becoming to every business we work with, and how homogenous so much website design has started to feel. Splitting out the digital side of what we do has given us room to grow that offering across Cumbria and beyond, without losing the design thinking it grew from.
One of our founders, Jili Allen, put it like this:
“Wildbird was born of a wish to put back human-led design front and centre of the creative process. Good honest northern support and exceptional design made available nationwide. We simply want to provide digital services and products that are a cut above; showcasing the incredible talents of the county and consistently doing the best job we can for every client. We’re absolutely delighted to have been recognised on a global scale as we launch Wildbird proper but I think it reflects that we are living, and working with, our values day in, day out.”
Judged on substance, not just style
We’re proud that entries to the Web Excellence Awards aren’t judged on looks alone. An international panel assesses every project against rigorous, multi-dimensional criteria; covering technical SEO, user experience architecture, mobile performance, site speed, AI discoverability, and accessibility. Knowing our work stood up against that level of scrutiny makes the wins even more rewarding.
We were recognised in the Recruitment category for our work with London-based agency TalentYard, and in the Charitable Organisations category for our work with leading Cumbrian charity Another Way.
Another Way: a digital hub built on sustainability
Our first award celebrates the work we did with Another Way, a charity dedicated to youth engagement, community connection, and sustainability. We were set the brief of creating a vibrant, user-centred website that could appeal across age groups while genuinely capturing the attention of younger users without losing sight of the charity’s environmental mission.
That mission shaped how we built the site. We used eco-conscious, renewable-energy-powered hosting, paired with lightweight coding to keep load times and server demands low. The fully responsive design ensures a seamless experience across devices, and we built in an intuitive content management system so the Another Way team can update and manage content independently, without needing to come back to us for every change.
The judges described the result as a dynamic digital hub that strengthens community engagement and actively promotes sustainable action, which is exactly what we set out to achieve!
Amy Bray, founder and director of Another Way, said of the award:
“Another Way is honoured to receive a Web Excellence Award for our brilliant website, designed by the talented Jili Allen. As an environmental education charity created for young people, we knew that the website had to be accessible, welcoming and most importantly, full of hope. Our team is proud of the site and how interactive it is, and that it has become the embodiment of everything we stand for.”
TalentYard: recruitment with personality
Our second award recognises the redesign we delivered for TalentYard Recruitment Ltd. This was a project focused on better connecting candidates and employers through stronger user experience, sharper functionality, and a design that reflects TalentYard’s distinct personality.
Throughout the build, we prioritised simple navigation, clear communication, a streamlined application process, and a more personal, technology-driven feel to help TalentYard stand apart from competitors. We’re pleased to say the result is a high-performing recruitment platform that’s already delivering measurable results for them.
The judges highlighted how the project demonstrated our ability to create effective, user-focused digital experiences; combining thoughtful design, robust development, and strategic content to drive meaningful outcomes for our client.
What’s next for us
Two international awards would be a natural moment to pause and celebrate, but we’re already back to work. Our focus now, more than ever, is on building in-person relationships and creating authentic, ownable websites that highlight what makes each of our clients different, hopefully without ever losing the human touch that this agency was founded on.