Lancashire business leader Ann Dean has picked up a lifetime achievement award at one of the county's top business awards.

The former High Sheriff of Lancashire was named the Lancastrian of the Year in front of a sell-out audience at the Be Inspired Business Awards, The BIBAs, ceremony at the Blackpool Tower on Friday night.

Preston tile supplier Roccia collected the Business of the Year and Garstang-based Hoofcount, which sells chemical baths for cattle, was the only business to walk away with more than one award picking up the Growth Business of the Year and Micro-Business of the Year.

Francis Egan, Chief Executive Officer of headline sponsor, Cuadrilla, said the awards' winners recognise the wider benefits which the business community bring to Lancashire.

He said: "The people behind businesses the length and breadth of Lancashire are bringing prosperity, jobs and investment, but they are doing so much more than that." 

"They are inspiring, mentoring and helping to grow the communities around them and it is this wider role which The BIBAs recognises as much as their success in the world of business."

"Every year, I walk away from The BIBAs' ceremony feeling enthused by the strength of the Lancashire business community and this year was no exception, a huge congratulations to all the finalists and winners."

Lancastrian of the Year award winner Ann Dean, of Broughton, near Preston, is involved in a wide range of roles in business, charity and educational organisations.

Her business interests include a role as a director of Gutterking, a family-owned group of builders’ merchants, founder and owner of Benetimo PR, which specialises in the healthcare sector, and a role as a director on the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership.

In total 20 awards were handed out in front of an audience which was entertained by pop star and actor Jason Donovan, whose musical career saw him sell more than three million records.

Blackburn's Tayla Reynolds collecting the Most Inspiring Young Person prize.

Chorley-based Scorpion Automotive won the Manufacturer of the Year award with Sunshine Events, of Preston, retaining the Service Business of the Year prize, the third successive year they have won at The BIBAs.

Pet food manufacturer, GA Pet Foods, which is based in Buckshaw Village, won one of the awards; new categories, Green Business of the Year, with Pendleside Hospice named the Third Sector Business of the Year.

The winners will now become the latest entrants to The BIBAs Academy which will give them access to masterclass sessions with Lancashire business leaders, exclusive visits to top businesses and growth workshops designed to support further growth.

All profits from the ceremony, which attracted another sell-out crowd to The Blackpool Tower, will go in to The BIBAs’ Foundation, who offers grants to individuals and organisations which support enterprise programmes designed to create the next generation of Lancashire business leaders.

THE BIBAs 2019 – WINNERS

Lancastrian of the Year - Ann Dean DL

Most Inspiring Young Person of the Year - Tayla Reynolds

New Business of the Year - Nutree Life

Engineering Business of the Year - Cutting Edge Services

Exporter of the Year - Evans Vanodine International

Digital & Marketing Business of the Year - Learn Live

Employer of the Year - Connect Childcare

Green Business of the Year - GA Pet Foods

Family Business of the Year - Cummins Mellor

Professional Services Business of the Year - David Cox Architects

Manufacturer of the Year - Scorpion Automotive

Micro Business of the Year - Hoofcount

Construction Business of the Year - Anderton Gables

Leisure & Tourism Business of the Year - Hallmark Hotel Preston

Third Sector Business of the Year - Pendleside Hospice

Service Business of the Year - Sunshine Events

Small Business of the Year - Nextday Freight

Medium Business of the Year - Tharstern

Growth Business of the Year - Hoofcount

Business of the Year – Roccia