Great British Car Journey’s apprentice mechanic Luke Henshaw has been named as the 2022 Tourism Young Achiever in the Peak District and Derbyshire Tourism Awards.
Luke (18) was one of just 15 Gold winners at the awards, which were organised by Marketing Peak District & Derbyshire. ‘Tourism Young Achiever’ was a new award category added to the awards line-up to recognise the thousands of jobs supported by tourism across the Peak District and Derbyshire.
In addition to Luke’s win, the Ambergate-based classic car attraction also scooped the silver award in the New Tourism Business category and bronze in the Experience of the Year category for its unique Drive Dad’s Car experience just 10 months after opening its door to visitors.
Luke, from Mansfield, joined Great British Car Journey in April ahead of the popular attraction opening in May 2021. He works and learns alongside the attraction’s Chief Engineer and to keep a fleet of nearly 200 cars in working order.
Delighted to be recognised, Luke said: “it’s a great honour to be recognised. I was a little nervous but the atmosphere was brilliant and a great experience for my first awards ceremony. I’m learning so much at Great British Car Journey. It’s a fantastic place to work with an amazing variety of the cars that I get to work on daily. It’s brilliant.”
Richard Usher, founder and CEO of Great British Car Journey said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been recognised across three categories in the awards after opening just 10 months ago amidst Covid restrictions.
“Luke, as indeed all the team – from volunteers and paid employees – are integral to ensuring Great British Car Journey continues to grow and become the go-to destination for classic car enthusiasts throughout the UK.
“Despite recent setbacks with the weather, we’re all really looking forward to 2022. We have even more plans for the attraction in the pipeline and the team and I are definitely aiming for more golds in the awards next year.
Designed to recognise and reward excellence and outstanding achievement in the Peak District and Derbyshire’s valuable tourism sector, the awards brought together 41 finalists in 15 categories for a glittering ceremony at Chesterfield’s four-star Casa Hotel.
Great British Car Journey is open seven days a week from 10.00am until 5.00pm and charts the history of the British motoring industry through more than 130 cars on display, including Austin Sevens, Morris Minors, Minis, Ford Escorts and even a McLaren supercar.
You can book tickets to visit us at: www.greatbritishcarjourney.com