‘This is for everyone I work with’ says Knaresborough woman made MBE

A charity director from Knaresborough has been made an MBE in the first King’s New Year Honours.

Julia Skelton leads Mind the Gap, a Bradford-based arts company that specialises in offering training to and performances by people with learning disabilities and autism.

Having been in post for more than 20 years, including leading the organisation through the covid pandemic, she was still surprised to receive the email informing her she was being offered the honour. She said:

“My first reaction was to assume it was a hoax! Having established via a trusted colleague that it wasn’t, my second reaction was to be very embarrassed, having spent many years working hard to put others in the limelight.”

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Despite the honour being in her name, Julia said she recognised it as something for the entire theatre company.

She said:

“Some people get nominated for an MBE for their individual endeavours. Not me though – without question this recognition is for Mind the Gap and everyone, past, present and future, who’s contributed to the company’s success.

“In particular, the fantastic learning disabled and autistic artists who underpin everything we do and what we are about. And for those who collaborate artistically and more broadly so the company can create and tour work, and support skills development.”

Julia said she hoped the honour would help to promote the arts, especially as they face cuts to public funding and other challenges.

She also paid tribute to all women receiving honours, adding:

“I’m just one of thousands of women who plug away day in, day out, to further the success of things they believe in.

“I’m pleased to accept this award in celebration of all women’s achievements, especially those living and working in the north.”

Five Harrogate district recipients on King’s first honours list

Years of dedication in their fields have brought recognition for people from the Harrogate district.

The first New Year Honours List published in the reign of King Charles III features five residents from the area, each for different reasons.

Richard Sheriff, CEO of the Red Kite Learning Trust (RKLT), has been made an OBE for services to education.

The former headteacher was made head of the trust in 2018 after 11 years at Harrogate Grammar School.

RKLT now comprises 13 primary and secondary schools, including the grammar school. It became one of the first teaching school hubs in the country, while Mr Sheriff was the first person to serve two terms as president of the Association of School and College Leaders.

He remains chairman of the ASCL’s trust leaders advisory board as well as a member of the national STEM advisory board and a trustee of the professional teaching institute.

There are three recipients of MBEs in the Harrogate district.

Cyclist Lizzie Deignan, who grew up in Otley and now calls Harrogate home, appears on the list after many years of achievements.

Lizzie Deignan

Photograph: Trek Segafredo

She represented Team GB at two Olympic Games, winning silver in the women’s road race in London in 2012. She has triumphed in the women’s Tour de France and the UCI Women’s Road World Cup on two occasions each, and in other races including Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders and the Tour de Yorkshire.

The 34-year-old is now back in training after having her second child in September, and is expected to be racing for Trek-Segafredo again in 2023.

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Knaresborough resident Julia Skelton has been recognised for her services to charity and to the community in Bradford, through her role as executive director of Mind the Gap.

The theatre company offers training courses and live performance for people with learning disabilities and autism.

Dementia Forward CEO Jill Quinn has also been made an MBE, in recognition of her services to people with dementia across the Harrogate district.

She founded the charity in April 2012, supporting people with dementia and those caring for them. It has gone on to expand across North Yorkshire, offering an advice line, specialist dementia nursing services, and community events and groups for people with dementia and their families and carers.

The BEM has been awarded to Killinghall resident Anne Holdsworth, chair of the parish council and long-standing active volunteer in the community.

As well as almost 50 years on Killinghall Parish Council, Mrs Holdsworth has served on the village hall committee, as a governor at Killinghall Primary School, and as a member of the health authority. She has also represented the parish council at borough and county councils.

 

Want to know more about our local recipients of the King’s New Year Honours? Keep an eye on the Stray Ferret’s website and social media for in-depth stories and interviews tomorrow.