A business leader from Preston has been nominated for a prestigious national award for his voluntary work in supporting a local school to develop its careers provision.

Neil Conlon, the Business Development Manager for Conlon Construction, is on the shortlist for Enterprise Adviser of the Year in the Careers Excellence Awards 2019.

Advertisements

Mr Conlon was nominated for his role as Enterprise Adviser for Eden Boys’ School in Preston, which involves helping the school plan and develop its careers programme.

He is also a private sector member of the Lancashire Skills and Employment Advisory Panel, which works on strategy and planning for skills and jobs.

Mr Conlon said: “I am delighted to have been shortlisted for Enterprise Adviser of the Year. 

“I would encourage other Lancashire businesses to get involved and help inspire our young people – it is a great way to boost links with your local community, raise the profile of your business to your future talent pool, but also make a difference to the lives and aspirations of our young people.”

Read more: Businesses asked to ‘Give an Hour’ to inspire the next generation

The nationwide awards are run by the Careers & Enterprise Company in partnership with the Gatsby Foundation. They go to schools, colleges, employers, local areas and providers which demonstrate best practice in careers provision.

Over the past few years, the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP), working through the Lancashire Skills Hub, has launched a wide-ranging drive to improve careers education in the county, working closely with schools, colleges, local businesspeople and careers management delivery partner Inspira. 

LEP Board Director for Skills and Technical Education and Chair of the Lancashire Skills and Employment Advisory Panel, Amanda Melton, said: “We are thrilled and proud that four nominations for these national awards come from Lancashire.

“Well done to the nominees for making the shortlist. They all thoroughly deserve this recognition. 

“Following on from the recent success of eight local schools and colleges in being recognised as providing world-class careers education, these latest award nominations show that young people in the county can now access high standards of careers education across the board.

“As a result, they have better job prospects and businesses can access a wider talent pool, helping them grow and succeed.

“Hearing from business leaders like Neil, and the county’s other Enterprise Advisers, is proven to help young people in their careers and boost their employability.  

“Through our Give an Hour campaign, we are asking more local businesspeople to volunteer a little of their time to work with local students.”

Read more: Muslim academy for boys in Preston receives outstanding Ofsted rating

Mark Bowman, Chief Exec of Inspira said: “The nominations are a fantastic accolade for the all the hard work the careers partners, Enterprise Co-ordinators and Enterprise Advisers have done to connect the business world with education institutions in Lancashire.”

The awards ceremony will take place on Friday 27 September at the Royal Society of Chemistry in London.