Shibden Mill Inn manager is award finalist

Glen Pearson has impressed the judges and is now in with a chance of being named Licensee of the Year.

As one of six finalists, Glen and the Shibden Mill Inn have been through audits on food hygiene ratings, independent social media audits, mystery customer visits and welcomed the judging panel to the premises.

Glen then faced a panel judging day and was quizzed by industry experts in four areas - marketing, industry affairs, finance and people training.

Glen said: “I am absolutely over the moon to have been named as one of six shortlisted finalists for this year’s prestigious BII Licensee of the Year Award.

“To have beaten off such stiff competition from the hundreds of outstanding entries to make it this far is one of the proudest moments in mycareer.”

Sue Allen, commercial and membership director of the BII, said: ‘The finalists should be extremely proud of themselves for reaching this stage of such a demanding process. The Licensee of the Year Awards are renowned for being extremely challenging but we do feel that this heightens the level of achievement for those who have reached the final stage. ”

Licensees entered from across the UK, with Glen and the other finalists successfully demonstrating through a number of stages their expertise in the pub and hospitality industry.

Simon Heaton, proprietor of the Shibden Mill Inn, said: “I am so pleased for Glen, who thoroughly deserves his place in the final. His tireless approach to excellence in every aspect of the business is unparalleled and his passion for his role here at Shibden Mill Inn is infectious. He is a fabulous ambassador for Shibden Mill Inn and in my opinion would be the perfect choice for being crowned BII Licensee of the Year 2016.”

All finalists will be presented with trophies at the BII Summer Event on June 7, when the overall winner of Licensee of the Year 2016 will be announced.