Let's make Yorkshire the UK capital for Queen's Awards for Enterprise - Mark Casci

The movie industry has the Baftas. The music business has the Brit Award. And for athletes, the highest honour one can expect is to be named Sports Personality of the Year.

But when it comes to the world of business, The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are the highest official accolade a British firm can achieve.

It was established by Royal warrant in 1965, with the first awards presented the following year. Each award is valid for five years and winners are invited to a Royal reception and are presented with the award at their company premises by one of the Queen’s Lord-Lieutenants, with the winners also able to fly the Queen’s Awards flag at their main office, and use the emblem on marketing materials such as packaging and adverts for this time period.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

During my career I have visited the headquarters of hundreds of businesses and any firm which has been as successful as to have been presented a Queen’s Award always has it displayed proudly and prominently.

Watermans was among the winners.Watermans was among the winners.
Watermans was among the winners.

My view that Yorkshire is home to a truly world class business community is a matter of public record. One would expect nothing less from anyone who holds my title.

However, it has long been a source of discouragement that this region has all too often come up short when it comes to these awards being presented each year.

This is, of course, not to say that there have not been successes. There have, but the amount of awards presented each year usually hovers around the mid teens, a level I consider to be unrepresentative of the scale of achievement seen in Yorkshire.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It was against this backdrop that the publication of the Queens Awards for 2022 brought me so much pride. Yorkshire had a bumper year this year, with a total of 23 accolades being handed to the region’s firms. In total, Yorkshire firms won 15 awards for International Trade, six for Innovation and two for Sustainable Development. When the listings came through from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy the day prior to the publication (under strict embargo, of course) I allowed myself a punch in the air that would normally be reserved for rare victories from my favourite sports teams.

Betty's was praised for its sustainability agenda.Betty's was praised for its sustainability agenda.
Betty's was praised for its sustainability agenda.

The winning firms deserve credit and this column will afford them that. Those winning for innovation were: Care’s Laboratory in Barnsley, Tickhill Engineering in Doncaster, Brandon Medical in Leeds, Essential Healthcare in Birstall, Jemmtec Engineering (trading as Magma Ceramics and Catalysts) in Dewsbury and The Body Doctor in Denby Dale, near Huddersfield.

For international trade, South Yorkshire very much led the way with Rotherham’s Corrosion Resistant Materials and Waterman Corporate Enterprises, Sheffield’s ICD Europe, Loadhog, Special Quality Alloys, Sport:80, Sumo Group and Watermill, Halifax’s A-Safe, Leeds’s Jack Brodie, Subpixel and Quality Bearings Online, Bradford’s Regal Food Products and The London Oil Refining Company and the University of Huddersfield all honoured.

Finally, Rotherham’s AESSEAL and Harrogate’s Betty’s and Taylors of Harrogate both won awards for sustainable development.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

All of the above firms should be in receipt of the warmest of congratulations. Yorkshire was one of the best represented regions, well ahead of the North West, Scotland and Wales.

Special Quality AlloysSpecial Quality Alloys
Special Quality Alloys

It is right and proper that in addition to these individual firms, we should also pay tribute to Professor Dame Hilary Chapman and Ed Anderson, the Lord Lieutenants for South and West Yorkshire respectively, who did sterling jobs in getting this number in the right direction.

I know their hearts will swell with pride and presentation of each award.

The focus now should be on 2023. More firms can and must put their names forward for a Queen’s Award.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

There is talent across the region and it should be recognised at the highest of levels. Let us commit to a minimum of 30 awards for next year and onwards each year thereafter until we make Yorkshire the top destination for these trophies.

I truly believe we can do it.

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.