The BIG DAY finally arrived - The Rural Business Awards National Final, staged at The Monastery, Manchester.
Award category: The Great Out-tours were contesting The ‘Best Rural Professional Services Business’ In The UK.
Background: After WINNING ‘Best Rural Professional Services Business’ at the highly reputed South East Rural Business Awards Final (on 18.10.19), The Great Out-tours advanced to the NATIONAL AWARDS FINAL on Thursday 27 February 2020.
We were pitching against award winning esteemed businesses from the North (to include Scotland & Islands), Midlands, Wales & Northern Ireland, South West & East of the UK.
Carriage: From quite literally the four corners of our island of Blighty, the UK team drove from their respective regions, over such spectacles as the beautiful snow capped Peak District, Pennines & Scottish Highland mountains, as well as the green Chilterns.
In sun 🌞 drenched blue skies, our Sussex team were treated to a wildlife extravaganza, with over twenty Red Kites spotted flying over/around the M40, wheeling and soaring in courtship displays! WOWW!! 😃 Additional treats were spotting a hansom antler clad Fallow Deer Buck & Muntjac Deer nibbling the roadside grass!
Attendees: We took a healthy 'Green Team' to fly the flag, who comprised:
- John Brooksbank - The Great Out-tours
(Founder)
- Julie Brooksbank – The Great Out-tours
(Company Secretary)
- Samantha Cross – The Great Out-tours Arun
(Franchise Owner)
- Laura Stevens Smith – The Great Out-tours Wealden (Senior Instructor - After School Clubs)
- Patricia Bowdler – The Great Out-tours Wealden
(Senior Instructor - After School Clubs)
- Rebecca Sear – The Great Out-tours
(Head of Recruitment)
- Jessica Edwards - The Great Out-tours Nottingham (Franchise Owner)
- Nick Burton – The Great Out-tours Blackburn
(Franchise Owner)
- Roman Laznicka - The Great Out-tours Aberdeen (Franchise Owner)
All made it safely and with flags fluttering nervously in the breeze, we drove in convoy to the venue - the awe inspiring Monastery in Goreton, Manchester.
COULD WE? 🥁🥁🥁🥁
Click here to see our official video of the glittering Grand Final as the evening's events unfolded.
"We determine who we are by what we do. To a person we have a passion to inspire people in the countryside.
Every single Great Out-tours team member puts in so much hard work to ensure that adults with special needs, attending our adult ‘Four Seasons Activity’ programmes and children participating in our Primary after school clubs, get an illuminating, educational and rewarding experience.
The door to success is marked ‘Push’ and for me personally, building the business from an idea to award winning status, was not just about revelling in the early successes but pushing through the adversity too.
We experienced seismic obstacles in our development and such defining moments were surmounted with an inner drive and commitment by all our team, which led to some of our greatest initiatives and successes.
This commitment inspires our audiences to care for, protect & sustain the wonders of the Great Out-doors.
Getting recognition of this magnitude from the esteemed Rural Business Awards judges & industry leaders like Amazon, O2, NFU Mutual & Openreach, is a fitting tribute to our collective dedication / exacting high standards to the cause & a great achievement for our business / the UK’s rural community as a whole.
The competition this year was really tough and of such a high standard, so I am delighted to be bringing this award back to our team.
We will use this prestigious accolade to further elevate The Great Out-tours on a National & International level.”
John Brooksbank
Founder – The Great Out-tours
