(DTI) Royal accolades for enterprising East Midlands businesses 

The annual winners and recipients of The Queen's Awards for Enterprise were announced on 21 April, The Queen's birthday. They are the UK's most prestigious accolades for business-related achievement and a total of 119 business Awards and 11 individual Awards have been conferred this year.

In the East Midlands Awards have gone to eight organisations, from a business with five employees to a company with over 800. Winners include a Leicester company who have developed a new way of producing paint colour cards to a joint win for Nottingham University for nanotechnology research.

THE EAST MIDLANDS AWARD WINNERS ARE:
INTERNATIONAL TRADE
* Bridgehead International Limited, MELTON MOWBRAY, Leicestershire who provide specialist consultancy services to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. The company commenced trading in 1994 and wins the Award for the first time for more than trebling its exports over three years.
INNOVATION

* Taylor Bloxham Limited, Beaumont Leys, LEICESTER for the innovative development of a method of producing paint colour cards.

This is the third year of The Queen's Award for Enterprise Promotion (QAEP), an Award for individuals who have played an outstanding and significant role in promoting the growth of enterprise and entrepreneurial skills and attitudes in others. They include a Lifetime Achievement Award and ten Standard Awards.

The Queen's Awards for businesses honour outstanding UK companies. Across the country two Awards go to firms with only three employees and another goes to an international giant that employs 68,000 people. The Awards are made in three separate categories:

International Trade, Innovation, and Sustainable Development. Winners include the world's largest privately-owned yacht builder, a high street fashion retailer, an internationally recognised visitor attraction, a manufacturer of novel immuno-diagnostic kits for use in diagnosing and monitoring multiple myeloma (a type of bone marrow cancer), a company that provides financial services to the voluntary sector, and a business recognised for the promotion of sustainable manufacturing practice in the UK's furniture making industry.

Richard Lambert, Director-General of the CBI, said:
"Winning a Queen's Award for Enterprise is a tremendous achievement and this year's winners are very worthy recipients that reflect the strength and diversity of UK plc.