Picture caption: (L-R) Steve Kelsall of MAN, Stephen Hill, Nigel Hargreaves, Neil Waters of MAN and Andrew Mawson, Bibby Distribution’s head of Safety, Health, Environment and Quality.

Bibby Distribution has recognised its safest and most skilled drivers, at its second annual Driver of the Year celebration.

Nigel Hargreaves and Stephen Hill (pictured above), who work at Bibby Distribution’s Wakefield and Hartlepool depots respectively, were jointly named LGV Driver of the Year.

The pair recorded an “almost perfect” telematics score, based on data from the company’s on-board Microlise system, held an incident-free track record and had no tachograph infringements.

Dave Bennett, who also works at Wakefield, was named Articulated FLT & Materials Handling Equipment Driver of the Year, while Steve Dunstan from the Scunthorpe site was Counterbalance FLT Driver of the Year. He came out on top in a theoretical test and three forklift driving challenges.

Richard Morson, managing director at Bibby Distribution, said: “We’re incredibly lucky to have the strongest team we’ve ever had in the business, and these awards celebrate some fantastic achievements.

“It’s testament to the commitment our people have made in Bibby Distribution, and to the ongoing investment we are making in helping everyone to achieve their full potential.”

Also picking up awards were Adam Beasley from Weedon, who won Rigid LGV Driver of the Year, while Shaun Pritchard at Clitheroe was named Shunter Driver of the Year based on a test carried out across all sites. Bury-based Tony Warburton, last year’s Forklift Driver of the Year, collected MHE Instructor of the Year.

As well as recognising Bibby Distribution drivers, the company presented awards for the first time to its best performing depots, based on audit scores and Safety, Health, Environment and Quality (SHEQ) performance.

Blackburn won the overall Warehouse Depot of the Year, with Corby picking up Transport Depot of the Year and Glasgow taking the company’s SHEQ Depot of the Year. 

All finalists in the driving categories were treated to a racing day at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground in Leicestershire, where they got to swap driving trucks and forklifts for a stint behind the wheel in an Aston Martin DB9 and even a hovercraft.

Launched in 2016, the Driver of the Year Awards are part of Bibby Distribution’s Road to Zero strategy, aimed at achieving zero harm, waste and environmental impact from its operations.