BARNOLDSWICK businessman Ian Weatherall has been made an MBE in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Mr Weatherall, 57, in managing director of Hope Technology and receives his honour for ‘services to business, innovation and the community in Lancashire’.

He founded the company along with late partner Simon Sharp in 1989 and it is now a world leader in engineering bicycle components, driving the industry forward through designing, testing and manufacturing products in-house at the factory.

In 2003 he focused the company entirely on bicycle products being used by top riders and teams.

In 2017 he built a new 10,000 sq.ft extension to house a state of the art Carbon Fibre plant and invested a further £1.5m in new machinery. The company produces over 60,000 brakes, 90,000 wheels and a huge range of other parts with a staff of over 160.

“I am thrilled and surprised to have been awarded this and am now the second in my family to have an MBE. My mother, Audrey was awarded the MBE two years ago for services to village halls.”

He provides his workforce with bikes to ride to work, enabling the testing of Hope’s products whilst promoting health and fitness. He also launched Academy Kids and Hopetech Women to introduce more women and children to cycling.