Director’s pride at taking part in new King’s Awards network event

A director at Nimbus Disability has spoken of his pride after being invited to attend a gathering of a new network made up of the region’s King’s Awards recipients.

Mark Briggs, partnership director at the Derby-based social enterprise, recently took part in the first Midlands King’s Awards Network (MKAN) event held at the University of Birmingham.

The event brought together leading businesses and organisations from across the region representing more than £7 billion in turnover and £294 million of investment.

Mark was a member of the panel discussion focusing on promoting opportunity and the wider discussions designed to inspire and enable new collaborations that will drive investment and growth and unlock greater opportunities for the region.

The King’s Awards for Enterprise is recognised as the highest honour for a UK business.

The Midlands is home to more King’s Awards recipients over the past five years than any other region outside London and the South East.

The Midlands King’s Awards Network was convened by the Midlands Engine Partnership in collaboration with regional Lord-Lieutenants and government partners.

It aims to harness the collective power of the region’s most successful enterprises, driving investment, economic growth and social mobility.

Nimbus Disability, which is run by disabled people for disabled people, achieved The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2022 for the development of its Access Card, which is the world’s first accessible ticketing scheme.

The card is currently held by about half a million disabled people and is recognised by more than 2,000 venues and events across the world.

Mark said: “It was an honour to be invited to be part of this inaugural event which was both informative and inspiring – showcasing the best of Midlands’ businesses and organisations who have been recognised with this accolade.

“Our goal is to level the playing field for disabled people to ensure they have equal access to events and venues.

“Increased accessibility should be at the heart of all businesses and organisations, and we welcomed the opportunity to be part of the wider discussions to achieve this as part of the overall objectives of the network to drive economic growth, investment and social mobility.”