Business figures recognised on King's Birthday Honours list

Two business leaders from Lancashire and an Lancaster University professor have been named on the King's Birthday Honours List.

Ram Gupta of Blackburn based IT provider Nybble will receive the British Empire Medal for his services to communities in Lancashire and Greater Manchester.

The leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council has shared his congratulations to a local businessman who has been named on the King’s Birthday Honours list.

Coun Phil Riley said: "From humble beginnings in Blackburn, Ram is a genuinely decent gentleman who does his hometown proud.

"He has always stayed true to his roots and while building his business here, Ram demonstrates social responsibility by supporting local charities and organisations through his business Nybble.

"It’s clear that Ram always looks for ways to give back to his local community, and has created a real culture of kindness and charity through his business operations.

"We’re proud to have Ram in Blackburn with Darwen as a business leader and philanthropist. On behalf of the Council, it’s my pleasure to congratulate Ram on this well deserved honour."

Born in Blackburn to parents from India, Ram Gupta grew up in the Randall Street area of town, as the youngest of four brothers.

He is a former student of Witton Park High School and Blackburn College, later studying at the University of Central Lancashire, then Lancaster University.

Ram went on to start his IT business Nybble on Darwen Street in Blackburn in 1998. 27 years on, the business is still based in Blackburn, on Glenfield Business Park.  

At Nybble, Ram has demonstrated how businesses can show social responsibility. One example of this is their programme to supply over 1,000 free laptops to children and families in the Blackburn area during the Covid pandemic to help bridge the digital divide and support.

Nybble is now among the businesses that support Blackburn and Darwen Youth Zone as patrons.

Ram was the winner of the prestigious ‘Arte et Labore’ award at the 2022 Hive awards.

In 2024 Ram was named among the UK’s Top 50 Ambitious Business People, a list that recognises the impact of business leaders through creating jobs, promoting social equality and championing sustainability.

Ram is also a member of Blackburn College’s Corporation Board, advising the college where we was once a student.

Ram has completed a list of activities to fundraise for local charities, including a daring skydive for East Lancashire Hospice and taking part in Nightsafe’s annual sleepout.

Meanwhile, Kate Shane, managing director of Blackpool Tourism Limited and chair of the Blackpool Tourism BID has been given an MBE for services to tourism and the local community.

For nearly 40 years, Kate built her career in Blackpool’s tourism industry — from her early days at First Leisure Corporation to her most recent role at Merlin Entertainments.

Kate joined Merlin in June 2011 after Blackpool Council bought leisure assets including The Tower and The Winter Gardens in 2010. She was initially in charge of attractions at The Tower before heading up the entire Merlin cluster in Blackpool.

In this role, as regional director, she led a team delivering memorable experiences to around 2m guests per year at cluster of attractions including the Blackpool Tower, Madame Tussauds, SEA LIFE and Sandcastle Waterpark.

While in this role Kate employed over 400 local people and the attractions saw strong growth in visitor numbers, financial performance and guest KPIs, all of which were underpinned by investment in skills training and the wellbeing of the team, a subject close to Kate’s heart.

Kate said: “I was completely stunned when I opened the letter, it has taken a few weeks to sink in. It is a great honour and I am truly humbled to be recognised in this way.

“I’ve spent the majority of my career in Blackpool’s tourism sector, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have done so in the town I love. As a child, we used to holiday in Blackpool as a family, and I still remember the excitement when my parents told me we were moving there.

"From my bedroom window, I could see the Tower — so to one day become its first female General Manager was truly a dream come true.

“Ensuring that the Blackpool community benefits from the tourism industry has been a great passion of mine. One of my proudest achievements while at Merlin was the introduction of a national care leaver covenant.

"This started in Blackpool as a commitment to ensuring everyone young person leaving the care system is supported with employment and training opportunities. This was adopted by Merlin on a corporate level and rolled out across the country.

“I see this recognition as an opportunity to shine a national spotlight on Blackpool. It is a town full of talented, hard-working, creative individuals and business owners. I look forward to leading Blackpool Tourism Ltd in this new era for our tourism industry bringing the private, public and third sector together to take the resort into an exciting and successful future."

Coun Lynn Williams, leader of Blackpool Council, said: “On behalf of Blackpool Council, I would like to congratulate Kate on this prestigious honour. She is an inspirational figure to so many across the town and the driving force behind improved standards, attractions and events in the resort.

“She isn’t just an exceptional businesswoman, she is a passionate advocate for the town who has dedicated her time to improving the outcomes and opportunities of our youngest residents. “We are very lucky to have her leading the way on our new strategic vision for the resort at Blackpool Tourism Ltd.”

Kate’s current role will see her deliver the ‘One Blackpool’ strategic vision for the resort, creating a collaborative culture across the tourism sector, bringing together public and private sector leaders.

Kate is on the National Visitor Economy Advisory Council, the Lancashire Combined Authority Business Board, the Blackpool Pride of Place Board (part of Business in the Community), the Blackpool Towns Fund Board and is Chair of the Blackpool Tourism BID.

She was previously a trustee of Blackpool Food Bank, represented Merlin on the Care Leaver Covenant National Business Council, a non-exec director of Blackpool Transport, on the board of governors of Blackpool and the Fylde College, a non-exec director of LeftCoast, a Creative People and Places organisation funded by ACE and on the IAAPA EMEA Advisory Board.

As part of her community engagement work, Kate set up the Blackpool Tower Food Hub, a food donation point during the pandemic, with donations distributed across the town via Blackpool Food Bank. Kate was also a driving force behind Merlin’s social value initiative with the Purpose Coalition, focusing on social impact delivered by place based tourism organisations.

Elsewhere, a Lancaster University professor, who has championed compassionate and effective services for women whose children are at risk of entering the care system, received an OBE.

Prof Karen Broadhurst, pictured, says she is delighted to receive the recognition awarded for her dedicated and high impact work in the field of child and family justice research.

She said: “It is a privilege and reflects not only my work, but also the tireless commitment and collaboration of many colleagues, practitioners, and families with whom I have worked over the years,” she adds.

“Our shared efforts to improve justice and care for children and families engaged with public services and the family justice system are more important than ever.

“I am also pleased that this honour highlights the vital role research, evidence, and the social sciences play in shaping a fairer society.”

With more than 20 years of experience of child and family justice research under her belt, Professor Broadhurst is renowned for her sustained, high-impact research that has helped to improve the lives of parents and children at the sharp-edge of children's services.

Her team produced the first national estimate of women’s vulnerability to repeat involvement in care proceedings and this programme of research catalysed major reforms in preventative services.

Prof Broadhurst then went on to design and lead the high-profile Born into Care research series, which uncovered the scale of care proceedings at birth, and raised major questions about women’s access to justice.

This programme of research has raised awareness of breaches of women’s legal rights in the immediate postnatal period and improved the help that women with complex needs receive during pregnancy and following birth.

She currently leads the first large-scale UKRI Economic and Social Research Council-funded research study which is examining the impact of women’s cross-justice involvement (family and crime), and impact on mother-child relationships. The COMFT study (Child Outcomes for Mothers Facing Trial) is being carried out in partnership with the Ministry of Justice, Birth Companions and Swansea University.

Prof Broadhurst has served in numerous advisory roles across government departments including serving as expert academic advisor to the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care, the President of the Family Division’s Public Law Working Group and the Commission on Justice for Wales.

She also led the development team which supported the Nuffield Foundation to establish the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory.

Prof Broadhurst is ADR UK (Administrative Data Research UK) Ambassador helping to raise awareness of the value of large-scale public services data in providing vital intelligence for policy makers and those designing services. She was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in 2020.

Through her leadership, the Centre for Child and Family Justice Research at Lancaster University, founded by Professor Broadhurst in 2015, has become a nationally and internationally recognised collaborative hub for evidence-based policy and practice transformation, shaping how services are designed and delivered to better support vulnerable children and families.

She lives locally, is a long-standing member of the university. She first joined the team at Lancaster in 2003 before taking up a role at Manchester University. She returned to Lancaster in 2015 and is the Discipline Lead for Social Work in Lancaster University’s newly established School of Social Sciences.

She is a regular media commentator, and her work has been covered by the BBC Radio 4 Today Programme, BBC News, the Guardian and the Times.

Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University Prof Andy Schofield said: “Prof Broadhurst’s work to improve the lives of vulnerable children and families is exemplary.

"Her research rigour coupled with her ability to build connections and leverage influence for the benefit of others is inspiring. Colleagues at Lancaster University will no doubt join me in congratulating her on her much-deserved success.”