The winners of the 15th annual Computing Awards for Excellence were announced at a spectacular ceremony in London last week.

More than 1,100 guests and industry VIPs joined in the celebrations at the Battersea Park Events Arena.

The top prize of the night, the Outstanding Contribution to UK IT award, went to Stephen Timms, the minister of state for competitiveness, who has championed the role of IT in government and this year kick-started a debate on next-generation broadband in the UK.

“I’m delighted to have been awarded this prize,” said Timms.

“IT is a real priority for me; ensuring access to high-performance technology in the UK is vital if we’re going to compete successfully on a global basis.

“It’s important we don’t lag behind in developing and promoting the use of new technology.”

This year’s IT leader of the year was Rorie Devine, chief technology officer at online gambling firm Betfair.

“When I heard my name as the winner of the award I was just stunned,” said Devine. “Receiving the award, judged by such an illustrious panel of my peers, is an honour that I would very much like to dedicate to my team, who consistently turn our passion for technology into business success.

“My thanks also go to Computing for providing the platform to demonstrate the wide range of talent and creativity in our industry during an excellent evening.”

But the ceremony was not only about winning, it was also about helping those less fortunate than ourselves, and Computing would also like to recognise the generosity of the guests at the awards.

We launched an appeal to raise funds for a vital telemedicine project in Africa, in partnership with charity Computer Aid International, and received nearly £3,000 in donations and pledges on the night.

Congratulations to all our worthy winners. The Computing awards will return in 2008.