FORMER Warrington South election candidate and Stockton Heath Parish Cllr. Nick Bent is one of three people connected to Warrington, honoured in the King’s Birthday Honours.
Nick, who lives in Stockton Heath, and twice stood a Labour’s General Election candidate for Warrington South, has received an MBE for Services to Education in the Birthday Honours.
He has been Chief Executive Officer at upReach, a prominent UK-based social mobility charity since January 2023, guiding the organisation’s mission to help undergraduate students from less-advantaged backgrounds achieve their full career potential.
Commenting on his honour he said: “I am thrilled and proud to have been awarded an MBE in HM The King’s Birthday Honours List. I am particularly pleased that the award is for ‘Services to Education’, which has been a lifelong commitment and passion of mine.
“Doubly delighted that my friend Abigail Shapiro, with whom I co- founded The Tutor Trust in Manchester back in 2011, has also been honoured with an MBE for ‘Services to Education’.
“I am so grateful to have had the chance to make a difference, whether through professional roles as CEO of upReach and The Tutor Trust, or through volunteering with terrific teams and stellar leaders at Oasis Academies, the General Assembly of the University of Manchester, and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner with Baroness Anne Longfield CBE and Dame Rachel de Souza.
“Of course, there is still so much more to do, as this country remains deeply unequal, with massive regional disparities in access to high quality education and good jobs, and with young people across the country from working class or low income families still facing all sorts of unjust barriers. Just last month, Alan Milburn’s diagnostic report on the 1m+ NEETS in the UK made the scale of the challenge starkly clear.
“Nonetheless, I have relished the opportunity to work alongside some incredibly committed and impressive people to create more choices and chances in life for the next generation. It’s the right thing to do for social justice and for community life, and it makes sense for our future economic prosperity as well.
“Onwards and upwards!”
Two other Warrington residents were also honoured by being made Medallists of the Order of the British Empire.
Clare Olver
Clare has been involved in strategic land management for 30 years and before that worked in the private waste sector.
During her time at The Mersey Forest, Clare has managed a number of large-scale projects including the national Defra funded Trees for Climate programme and is currently working part-time on woodland creation on the Vacant & Derelict Land Discovery project.
Outside of work, Clare is to be found in the garden.
Meanwhile, Josef Taylor, a consultant surgeon at, Alder Hey Children’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, has been recognised for services to children and young people.
