UKCA Director Chris Cheek explains why he and his colleagues launched the UK Coach Awards and the changes we've made for the 2018 competition

The revived awards scheme for the UK coach industry saw its first prizes presented in March 2009, at an event coinciding with the then brand new Best of Britain and Ireland trade show at ExceL in London’s Docklands. Since then, we have had a string of hugely successful events in the North West, at the Midland Hotel Manchester in April 2010 and at the Piccadilly Hotel in the same city in April 2011 and 2012. We returned in 2014, after our excursion to Alton Towers Resort in April 2013 and stayed until 2017. Another move is contemplated for 2018, though.

The scheme revived the highly successful Coach Industry Awards run by Coach & Bus Week but suspended in 2002, and was modelled on the highly successful UK Bus Awards, then just entering their sixteenth year, with a very strong track record of delivering benefits to sponsors, finalists and the wider industry alike.

When we launched the UK Bus Awards in 1996, we did so because we knew that the industry had a good story to tell in terms of its investment levels, improving service quality and environmental friendliness – but that too often the good things that were being done were not being promoted.

We thought that a properly independent, professionally run and truly impartial award scheme could help to get the message across. We adopted a business model with a special purpose, not for dividend company delegating detailed organisation of the scheme to a representative committee comprising industry people, stakeholders and customers. We believe this model has delivered what we hoped for in terms of rewards for staff, benefits for sponsors, recognition for winners and finalists - and helping to build the better image for the bus that we thought was possible all those years ago.

If the bus industry could do with some help in getting its story across, then so does the coach industry. And what a story it is!

The coach industry represents a prime example of the sort of sector of the economy that can drive growth and future prosperity: small and medium enterprises investing millions every year in their own future. It delivers

• an environmentally friendly mode of transport which helps to get or keep cars off the road.
• greener tourism in the UK whilst striving to improve accessibility for millions of passengers
• cost effective and affordable access to a whole range of facilities for people of all ages, classes and backgrounds to enjoy – whether countryside, seaside, culture, history or simply to have a bit of fun.

Oh, and by the way, the industry has a growth record that is second to none since it was liberated from the straightjacket of regulation 30 years ago.

So, late in 2008, we set about delivering a scheme for the coach industry - linked to the high-profile Best of Britain and Ireland trade and public exhibition scheduled for the end of March 2009.  As you can imagine, the backdrop of the worst economic crisis for over 60 years and the timescale - 12 weeks from launch to ceremony - set us a good few challenges. But, contrary to expectations in some quarters, we delivered.

On 27 March 2009, over 200 industry representatives sat down to dinner at the Guoman Tower Hotel and then watched a Presentation Ceremony of outstanding quality, delivered by our compere Carol Kirkwood, 'Voice of God' Roger Crisp and an outstanding production team led by Noel Fletcher at Gemini Productions - a company that has been our partners on the UK Bus Awards since 1999. Guest of honour that year was Wilben Short, then head of transport at the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG).

A year later the same team delivered again, this time to an audience of over 230 in the Alexandra Suite at the Midland Hotel in Manchester -  whilst the awards were presented by James Berresford, chief executive of Visit England. At most recently, the team delivered another outstanding event, this time in the International Suite at the Piccadilly Hotel in Manchester - a very special evening indeed, and one which will certainly live in my memory as something to treasure, with the audience growing by another 20% to over 250.

We repeated the triumphs at the Piccadilly in 2012. In 2013, we mounted a joint event at Alton Towers with the UK Coach Rally, but then the two organisations agreed to go their separate ways again. Thus, the UK Coach Awards returned to Manchester and the Piccadilly Hotel in 2014, and remained there for the following three years.  

There are no doubt still groans from some people, along the lines of “oh, no, not more awards”. Cynics - of which there are many - might be forgiven for thinking that you can win an award these days for just turning up for work.

Well, that’s as maybe – but if our experience with both the Bus and Coach Awards is anything to go by, then schemes like this work. Every year, we receive more nominations and entries of a higher quality, and our audiences are large and growing. And winning does matter: it delivers a higher profile, improves staff morale ... and delivers extra business.

And don’t just take my word for it – consider the words of David Brown, now Chief Executive of the Go-Ahead Group, and previously TfL’s managing director of surface transport. “The London Buses awards are designed to reward the operating and engineering staff who, by taking exceptional pride in their work, ‘go the extra mile’ in keeping London’s buses running. The awards give true recognition to their achievement by the announcement of the winners in the presence of so many key players in the industry.”

Or Choice Choice owner Chris Evitt from Coach Choice, winners of three awards in the 2009 competition. "Winning these awards has certainly led to an increase in inquiries form tour operators and group travel organisers and private groups," he told CBW in August 2009. He praised the awards scheme "not only to bring friends and colleagues in the industry together but also the opportunity for hard work to be recognised."

Malcolm Chance from Redditch operator Hardings International said of the scheme, “The award evening was fantastic. We took a load of our staff down. It was nice to meet people from the right across the industry. It was just great.”