The King has honoured more than half a dozen people from Brighton and Hove for their charity work and community contributions in the new year honours list.
Among them are Brighton Gin founder Kathy Caton and Brighton and Hove Albion owner Tony Bloom and former Albion footballer Howard Wilkinson who went to become the caretaker England manager.
Kathy Caton, 51, becomes an MBE. She said: “I can’t tell you surprised and shocked I am to have been put forward for this.
“I was particularly moved about the kind things that people have had to say about the role of Brighton Gin in the local community and championing diversity in the workplace and our efforts to start a new industry for Brighton despite all the trials and challenges of recent years.
“I’m going to mark the occasion with a hefty Seaside Strength Brighton Gin and Tonic (possibly two) but first I need to work the New Year’s Eve shift glass-collecting in our pop-up pub the Bottom’s Rest – keeping it real!”
Tony Bloom, 53, also becomes an MBE. He said: “I’m incredibly proud and truly humbled to receive this recognition and, while I’m honoured personally, it would not have been possible without so many people who’ve helped us achieve what we have.
“I’d like to thank my fellow directors, our staff, coaches and players who have been vital to the progress we’ve made.
“It has been an historic year for the club and this is a wonderful way to cap off a truly unforgettable 12 months.”
The honours list also recognises former rugby colleagues Kevin Sinfield, 43, and Rob Burrow, 41, as the pair are made CBEs for their fundraising and charity work.
They were in Brighton earlier this month as Sinfield completed the “7 in 7 in 7” challenge by completing seven ultramarathons in seven cities in as many days.
Sinfield has raised more than £15 million since his friend Burrow was diagnosed with motor neurone disease four years ago. MND is an incurable and life-limiting condition.
Howard Wilkinson, 80, played as a winger for Brighton for five years from 1966 to 1971 before a successful career as a football manager. He becomes an OBE.
Another Brighton man to be honoured was Liam Hackett who becomes an MBE. His voluntary work began at the age of 15 after years of being told to ignore those who were bullying him and failing to find adequate support.
He built an online community which has grown into an organisation called Ditch the Label which has a wide reach including international influence.
Here are the main Brighton honours.
OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire)
David Farnsworth – managing director, City Bridge Foundation, for services to the voluntary sector.
Jonathan Robert McGoh – chair and co-founder, the Reach Foundation, and co-founder and trustee, Reach Academy Feltham, London Borough of Hounslow, for services to education.
Oscar Victor Pinto-Hervia – founder, Hervia, for services to fashion and to charity.
Marc Howard Steene – founder and director, Outside In Art, for services to art.
Howard Wilkinson – chairman, League Managers Association, for services to football and charity.
MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire)
Anthony Grant Bloom – chairman, Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club, for services to Association Football and to the community in Brighton.
Kathryn Melanie Keele Caton – founder and managing director, Brighton Gin, for services to trade and to the community in Brighton.
Liam Daniel Hackett – founder and chief executive officer, Ditch the Label, for services to young people.
Helen Holtam – tutor, Friends of Erlestoke Prison, Origami Inside, for services to prisoners.
Richard Alexander Stewart – lately trustee and chair of trustees, St John’s School and College, for services to children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
Poor little England. Crumbling now. More charities then shops on the High Street.
The fact that the third sector is needed more than ever is something to be deplored, I agree. However, the fact that the third sector is stepping up to be there for people in their time of need is something to be congratulated.
The third sector exists because England is no longer a hard working country or a proud race. Everybody wants everything for free and that’s what’s been taught for the last few decades (“showing weakness is a strength”). Like the government, the third sectors funds will run dry at some point. Depending on others only works while others have the means (money) to support you.
The World Values Survey aligns with your perspective by indicating that Britain is among the nations with a comparatively lower emphasis on work orientation. Its findings further imply that a substantial proportion of the U.K. workforce is disinclined to prioritize work significantly. When survey participants were queried about the importance of making work a top priority, even at the expense of leisure time, only 22% of Britons concurred—a notable contrast to the 39% in France and 45% in Spain.
It is noteworthy that measures of productivity, while reflective of the motivations within Britain’s workforce, are intricately linked to a myriad of other factors, including skills development and technological investment.
WHY WASN’T CAROLINE LUCAS GIVEN ONE FOR SERVICES TO BUILDING 20,000 MILES OF BIKE LANES AND LLOYD RUSSELL – MOYLE FOR PROMOTING GINGER , GAY PEOPLE
They must have rejected your all caps nomination forms for them to be considered for one.
Subsequently, I have come to understand that his use of all-caps in posts is intended as a humorous endeavour. Regrettably, I find that his attempts at humour fall short of achieving a significant impact.
It was the ex Green council that built all the bike lanes not Caroline Lucas
And paid for by central government grant.