And so the four-day Platinum Jubilee weekend has come to an end.

Whether you attended a public Jubilee event in South Lakeland, watched celebrations in London on television, met up with friends and family or simply enjoyed an extended bank holiday period, it was good for people in this country to be able to have a shared positive experience after all the difficulties of the past two years.

The past week has also seen the announcement of Her Majesty the Queen’s Jubilee Birthday Honours List 2022, which marked the public service of individuals across the UK in celebration of the monarch’s 70 years of service

It was great to see a good selection of people from this area honoured.

They included individuals representing some of our most important industries and organisations.

Nigel Wilkinson, managing director of Windermere Lake Cruises Limited, was made an MBE for services to tourism and the economy in Cumbria.

On the Windermere Lake Cruises’ website, its chair Bill Bewley said it was a recognition not only of the years of hard work and commitment Nigel had put in to lead the company, ‘but also acknowledges the contribution that Nigel and Windermere Lake Cruises make to the wider economy of our county, which underpins the communities in which we operate’.

Nigel served as a director of Cumbria Tourism for almost ten years and is a member of the Board of Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

An MBE also went to Leslie Micklethwaite, who has played a major role in the success of the Lakeland Motor Museum in Backbarrow. Leslie, whose honour is for voluntary and charitable services to the community in north Lancashire and south Cumbria, has raised thousands of pounds for the Poppy Appeal and supports Grange-over-Sands Golf Club through its voluntary committees.

Adam Sutherland, the director of Grizedale Arts Centre, received an MBE for services to art and there were British Empire Medals recognising charity and community endeavours for painter Robert Sutcliffe from Grange, BR4N volunteer Val Winchester of Chapel-le-Dale and Appleby Archaeology Group member Martin Railton from Eden.

All are richly deserved.