Enterprising Yorkshire scoops 
dozen Queens’ Award honours

A dozen Yorkshire firms have won a Queen’s Award for Enterprise, the UK’s highest accolade for business success.

The region’s strong reputation for exporting goods was recognised with ten awards for International Trade.

These included a wide range of firms from Sheffield-based bra designer Panache Lingerie to Bradford-based mining equipment maker Osborn Metals.

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The region also produced two academic winners – the University of Huddersfield, which won an award for International Trade, and Professor Elizabeth Towns-Andrews, the university’s director of research and enterprise, who won an award for Enterprise Promotion.

Leeds-based luxury bed manufacturer Harrison Spinks won two awards in the Innovation and Sustainable Development categories.

The family-owned business is the first UK bed manufacturer to win two awards in the same year.

In total the region won 15 awards, ten for International Trade, three for Innovation and one each for Sustainable Development and Enterprise Promotion.

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The other winners in the International Trade category were Keighley-based dental supplier DB Orthodontics, Shipley-based IT service company Europlus Direct, Rotherham-based metal supplier London & Scandinavian Metallurgical Co, Grimsby-based oil and gas hose manufacturer Shand Engineering, York-based spare parts maker Sheppee International, Wakefield-based clothing designer The Wakefield Shirt Company and Todmorden-based mining equipment manufacturer Weir Minerals Europe.

The other winners in the Innovation category were Hull-based boiler maker Ideal Boilers and Tockwith-based Stage One Creative Services, which designs theatrical flying systems and was the company behind the ‘Olympic Cauldron’ in London 2012.

Honorary Yorkshire winners included wire lubricants company Metalube, which is based in Manchester but is run by three Yorkshire entrepreneurs. Metalube won an award for International Trade Its Commercial director Doug Hunt, who hails from Boroughbridge, said: “Last year we exported 98 per cent of what we produce. We manufacture in the UK but export to India, China and Brazil.”

Prof Towns-Andrews was one of ten recipients of this year’s awards for Enterprise Promotion.

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“When I opened the letter it was a complete shock, especially when there are only ten of these awards given to individuals each year,” she said.

“It’s such an honour to be recognised.”

The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are regarded as the UK’s most prestigious accolade for businesses and individuals.

Professor David Taylor, the University’s dean of international development, said: “The University of Huddersfield is arguably the fastest developing university in the UK.

“As a Huddersfield graduate myself, this makes me particularly proud,” he said.

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Harrison Spinks owns and manages a 300-acre farm with a flock of sheep and woodland in North Yorkshire to provide natural materials for its mattresses.

The group was the only Yorkshire company to win a Sustainable Development award for its mattresses.

These are made using fully recyclable natural materials grown at its own farm.

Harrison Spinks’ managing director, Simon Spinks, said: “Winning two Queen’s Awards is a remarkable achievement for the company, and one of which we are extremely proud.

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“The awards recognise the commitment to excellence that we all share at Harrison Spinks and reflect the fact that innovation and sustainability are at the very heart of our business.”

The Awards for Enterprise are made annually by Her Majesty The Queen and are awarded for the highest levels of excellence demonstrated in each category. A total of 152 firms received the accolade.

Business Minister Michael Fallon said: “The Queens Awards highlight our strong entrepreneurial streak and the excellent businesses we have up and down the country who are growing, creating jobs, making a valuable contribution to the economy and helping us to compete in the global race.”

Winners of the awards are visited by a royal representative and presented with a crystal bowl. They also attend a celebratory reception at Buckingham Palace.

They can use The Queen’s Award emblem in advertising, marketing and on packaging for five years.

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