New Year’s Honours for influential Lancashire figures

A number of Lancashire-based individuals, including a college principal, a blockchain pioneer and an MP, have been named in the New Year’s Honours list.

Bev Robinson (pictured), principal and chief executive of Blackpool and The Fylde College, has been awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), for Services to Further Education. The CBE is the highest-ranking Order of the British Empire award.

The award recognises her longstanding contribution to further education, through her leadership of Blackpool and The Fylde College, in her national roles as a non-executive director of the Board of the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education, co-author of the Augar Report and Sainsbury Review and locally as a member of Lancashire LEP’s Skills and Employment Board and Blackpool’s Town Deal Board.

Bev joined Blackpool and The Fylde College in April 2013. Under her guidance, the organisation has ranked in the top 3 per cent of further education colleges in England for six consecutive years for student success.

Andrew Stephenson, who has represented Pendle as its MP since 2010, has received a CBE in recognition of his dedication to political and public service.

His roles within the government include senior whip, business and industry minister, foreign office minister, transport minister, chair of the Conservative Party and Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury.

He is also a community first responder with the North West Ambulance Service and served locally as a volunteer vaccinator during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Blackpool-based Prof Dr Naseem Naqvi receives an MBE for services to blockchain and distributed ledger technologies. He founded the British Blockchain Association in 2017 and as president has seen it become one of the largest blockchain associations in the world. He is the lead author of UK’s National Blockchain Roadmap

Aside from his contributions to blockchain, he works full time as a senior medical doctor on NHS front lines and works with organisations including Health Education North West and Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Blackburn-born Salman Desai, who is North West Ambulance Service’s deputy chief executive and director of strategy, partnerships and transformation, has received the King’s Ambulance Medal.

The medal is awarded to ambulance staff who have shown distinguished service, exemplary dedication to their role, and demonstrated outstanding ability, merit and conduct to their vocation. 

Salman joined the Ambulance Service in 1997 as a paramedic and has kept his paramedic registration to date. From 2007-2015 he was head of service development, undertaking a number of roles transforming services for patients.

Salman joined the board of directors in 2016 as director of strategy and planning and was recently appointed as deputy chief executive of what is the second-largest ambulance service in the country. He has worked hard to redress the balance of representation from ethnic minority communities within the ambulance sector.

Other honours have been awarded to Christan Upton, headteacher of Tarleton Community Primary School who receives an OBE for services to education.

John Lord, chair of the Ribble Rivers Trust receives an MBE for services to the environment

Two employees of the Department for Work and Pensions receive honours for public service. Sharon Bell of Poulton le Fylde is an associate service manager at the department and receives an MBE, and Nageshwara Reddy of Lytham St Anne's is portfolio director for labour market and plan for jobs, receives a CBE

Janet Alexander, director, compliance operations at HM Revenue and Customs, receives an OBE for public service.