Heroes Awards 2026 Shortlist Revealed as Industry's Unsung Heroes Prepare for Biggest Celebration Yet
- Heroes Awards
- Jul 16
- 4 min read
The Heroes Awards has officially unveiled the shortlist for its 2026 national awards programme, recognising the outstanding individuals and teams who have gone above and beyond to make a difference across the UK's highways, transport, utilities and infrastructure sectors.
Now in its seventh year, the Heroes Awards has firmly established itself as the industry's premier celebration of the people whose dedication, courage, innovation and compassion often go unnoticed. From saving lives and supporting colleagues through difficult times to delivering exceptional service and championing safer workplaces, every finalist has demonstrated why they deserve national recognition.
The shortlisted nominees will now receive invitations to attend the prestigious Heroes Awards Gala Dinner, taking place on Monday 30 November 2026 at the London Hilton on Park Lane, where winners will be announced in front of more than 600 leaders from across the sector.
Celebrating the People Behind Britain's Infrastructure
Unlike traditional industry awards, the Heroes Awards places the spotlight firmly on people rather than projects.
The programme was created to recognise the individuals and teams who quietly make a difference every day—often without expectation of recognition—whether protecting colleagues, helping members of the public, driving innovation, improving wellbeing or simply demonstrating extraordinary commitment in difficult circumstances.
As investment across the UK's transport and infrastructure sectors continues at unprecedented levels, the awards aim to celebrate the people whose dedication underpins every successful project and keeps the nation's networks operating safely.
Record Number of Nominations
This year's awards attracted a record number of nominations from organisations across the highways, rail, utilities, local authority and transport sectors, making the judging process more competitive than ever before.
An independent panel of respected industry leaders spent weeks reviewing submissions before selecting this year's shortlist, with finalists representing organisations from every corner of the sector.
The shortlist reflects the exceptional diversity of today's infrastructure workforce, recognising frontline operatives, engineers, apprentices, traffic management specialists, emergency responders, project teams, wellbeing champions and leaders who have made an exceptional contribution over the past twelve months.
Special Recognition Award finalists will be announced separately in the coming weeks.
A Night Dedicated to Industry Heroes
The gala ceremony on 30 November will bring together clients, contractors, suppliers, local authorities and strategic partners for an evening dedicated to celebrating excellence across the infrastructure community.
More than simply an awards ceremony, the event has become one of the sector's most anticipated annual gatherings, recognising not only professional achievement but also acts of courage, compassion, teamwork and selfless service.
As in previous years, every shortlisted finalist will be recognised on the evening before category winners are revealed.
2026 Shortlisted Finalists
The finalists below are listed in alphabetical order and not in ranking order.
Jack McNeill | Nationwide Traffic Solutions |
Gareth Richards | HW Martin |
John Stewart | RMT |
Calvin Davies | Core |
George Robson | SRM |
Roque Duarte | Omnia |
Antony Uebersax & Kelvin Clement | Colas |
Gemma MacDonald | Paragon |
Max Barnley, Lauren Cowie, Simon Marsh & Robert Brittain | Highway Assurance |
Micky King | BQS |
Jason Allen BEM | Total Event Solutions (BUKO) |
Kuy Harrison | Wiltshire Police |
Stuart Green | Kier Highways |
Rebecca Warne | Paragon |
Kacey Peach | Paragon |
David Burgess | Network Rail |
Ryan Shaw | Hull Trains |
Steve Hick | Hull Trains |
Zoe Flannagan | Avanti West Coast |
Rizwan Javed | Transport for London |
Chris Bray | Direct Rail Services |
Samantha Passmore | West Midlands Trains |
Samir "Sam" Zitouni | LNER |
Connor Gill | Zone Contractors |
Jalilah Chesshire | Balfour |
Kieron Langmead | Quantum |
Lewis Gould | Quantum |
Lindsay Wade | Connected Kerb |
Annabelle Robinson | Siemens Energy |
Connor Derbyshire | Quantum |
Emma Hinch | Aureos |
Kayleigh Ashton | Ramudden |
Luna Marcius | Ramudden |
Liam Howard | NCP Car Parks |
Joe Goldie, Amanda Cozer & Andie Taylor | A47 Skanska |
Ian Jackson | Blakedale |
Nathan Doughty | Quantum |
Kathryn Boyce | Balfour |
Alfie Wake | BUKO |
Clayton Hobbs | BUKO |
Jimmy McCarthy | BUKO |
Martin Storey | BUKO |
Aaron Powell | Speedy Hire |
Gareth Jones | Speedy Hire |
Botley Bypass Roundabout Team | M Group |
Lacey Nash | Connect Plus |
Andy Kerr | Carnell |
Keaton Doyle and Reece Raddon | Quantum |
Micheal Riach | National Highways |
Skanska A428 Safety Team | Skanska A428 Safety Team |
Mohammed Naqshbandi | MAN Commercial Protection (working on behalf of Transport for West Midlands) |
Mark Lambert & John Denman | Carnell |
Matt Osman | MGroup Transport |
Raja Mushtaq | Fortel Group |
Martin Stratton | Quantum Traffic Management |
Nick Evans, Kurt Slaney & Ganger Jason Best | Octavius |
Asif Hashi | Octavius |
Mark Courtney | Octavius |
Nikki McGeachy | Octavius |
Tommy Hughes | Octavius |
Paris Linkins | Octavius |
Eduard Stoica, Patrica Voidoc (Barao) & Neil Bradley (Kier) | Octavius |
Fortel: Calvin Rush, Paul Costello, Ed Dixon, Dennis Tree & Skanska: Natasha Payne | Fortel / Skanska |
David Howard | Swarco |
Rowan Hubbard | Swarco |
David Cousins | Swarco |
Breaking Barriers Working Group – Kate Davie, Natalie Parker, Amelia Cox, Cassie Farrar, Amy Burgess, Andy Whitmill, Naomi Gitierrez & Leigh Cakebread | Connect Plus M25 |
Katie Sillcock & Keith Hughes | Connect Plus M25 |
Neil Bradley | Waterman Aspen |
Andrew Flint | AmcoGiffen |
Emily Finegan | Carnell |
Lee Childs | Carnell |
Simon Goose | Virtus |
Helena Byles | Balfour Beatty |
James Kelly | East Sussex Highways |
Dara Rice | Morgan Sindall |
Paul Attfield, Robert Searle & Solomone Ciriyawa | HW Martin |
Callum McNulty | Octavius Infrastructure |
Kevin Robinson, Founder of the Heroes Awards, said:
"Every year we think the standard cannot get any higher, yet every year our judges are left inspired by the extraordinary stories submitted from across our industry.
These awards are about recognising the people who rarely seek the spotlight but whose actions make an immeasurable difference to colleagues, communities and the travelling public.
Whether it is saving a life, supporting someone's mental wellbeing, championing inclusion, delivering innovation or simply going above and beyond every single day, every finalist represents the very best of our sector.
We congratulate everyone who has been shortlisted and look forward to celebrating their achievements at the London Hilton on Park Lane this November."
The Heroes Awards 2026 takes place on Monday 30 November 2026 at the London Hilton on Park Lane, where the winners will be announced during a black-tie gala attended by hundreds of leaders and colleagues from across the UK's highways, transport and infrastructure sectors.