A SPACE expert, a Wiltshire councillor, and the founders of a groundbreaking business are among the people included in the King’s New Year’s Honours list.
His Majesty King Charles has revealed who will be honoured with OBEs and MBEs at the start of 2023.
The Adver caught up with a few of the new honorees.
Libby Jackson joined the Swindon-based UK Space Agency in 2014 and has since managed education outreach program for Tim Peake's mission to the ISS, and encouraged young girls to consider working in STEM.
The agency's head of space exploration is now an OBE. She said: "I still can't believe it, I'm in awe.
"It’s a wonderful honour to be recognised for my work in this way, particularly by my peers across the UK Space Agency and government.
"Nothing happens in isolation and it’s only because I have worked with such an outstanding and talented set of people through the years that this has happened.
"I would like to thank them and pay tribute to their work.
"I grew up inspired by astronauts and the Apollo program, I wrote in my school yearbook that I wanted to work for NASA, but didn't think that human spaceflight was something the UK would be involved in.
"Then in the last decade, I've been at the forefront of space exploration in the UK and worked hard to secure the next generation of astronauts.
"Having this job title blows my mind, it shows that crazy dreams can come true, you just have to work hard and enjoy what you do and see what happens - and don't let anyone say you can't do something because of who you are.
"Early on in my career, I would be the only woman in the room but I was not treated differently. I'm not going to pretend there aren't problems but generally, it's a welcoming place to be and people respect me for what I do.
"I'm a very happy resident of Old Town and love working at the space agency. We've got a lot of fantastic missions to deliver, and I will keep striving to do things I find interesting, exciting, and worthwhile. "
Libby previously worked for Airbus Defence and Space in satellite operations before moving to a flight controller role at Mission Control and then Flight Director for the Columbus module, Europe’s laboratory on the International Space Station.
UK Space Agency chief executive Dr Paul Bate said: “I would like to congratulate Libby on behalf of everyone at the UK Space Agency. [This] is fantastic news and thoroughly deserved.
“I know how dedicated she is to sharing her passion for human spaceflight, particularly with the next generation.
"She is an inspiration who strives to champion the sector and ensure young people are aware of the wide variety of jobs available in space.”
Helen Belcher is a Corsham councillor in Wiltshire Council and co-founded the Trans Media Watch charity in 2010 before going on to become the chair of the Transactual organisation's board of directors.
Trans Media Watch works with news companies to ensure the reporting of trans, non-binary and intersex topics is accurate and respectful, while Transactual has a broader goal of educating people about trans rights and helping trans people make positive changes in their lives.
The Liberal Democrat previously stood as a Parliamentary candidate for Chippenham and she highlights community issues in Corsham.
Helen has now been made an OBE for services to the Transgender community.
She said: "I read the email four times before it sunk in, I was shocked, and thrilled to bits. It's been a very weird few weeks keeping this a secret, it almost didn't seem real.
"I helped start Trans Media Watch because I found myself saying I 'got off lightly' while transitioning because I had 'only' lost my job and one close family member when I told people about it - but that's awful, it should not be the case, so how can we make things better?
"We need to help the media get information right and make trans people feel more comfortable in our society. It's worked well over a number of years and only recently has the press and politics made it harder.
"I helped a blind trans Parliamentary candidate successfully take a complaint against The Sun for running an awful column, though challenging things after the fact is quite difficult.
"So, a lot of what the charity has achieved is by working with organisations to prevent harmful stuff being published in the first place.
"When you see a lot of hatred and misrepresentation, it's nice to know that someone is recognising what's going on and supporting what we do.
"Being invited to Downing Street, attending a garden party for the late Queen at Buckingham Palace, and now receiving this OBE has kept me going.
"I hope this honour might open a few more doors for us - and in my council role, I will continue trying to make things better for the residents of Corsham."
The co-founders of a Wiltshire company selling assistive technology to more than 100 countries around the world have each been awarded OBEs.
Scanning Pen bosses Jack Churchill and Toby Sutton received this honour for services to international trade, and to the dyslexia and special educational needs and disabilities community.
The organisation provides portable text-to-speech pen scanners which help readers understand printed text. These devices are now used daily by thousands of schools, in the workplace, and even in prisons.
From UK offices in Westbury and Shropshire, the business has suddenly grown from just the two university friends to more than 140 staff, and sold hundreds of thousands of scanning pens.
Jack Churchill and Toby Sutton said: “To say we are honoured by this announcement is an understatement.
“When we first started this venture over 20 years ago, we saw the opportunity to establish a business that could help millions of individuals with their literacy needs.
"Looking back, it is fantastic to know that through our technology we have supported so many to succeed.
“The success of Scanning Pens has allowed us to establish a goodwill organisation, Succeed With Dyslexia, which has made a reality of our wish to spread awareness around dyslexia through positive stories within this often-forgotten community.
“Without the support of our families and the whole team, neither of us would be receiving an OBE today. We look forward to many years ahead as we drive our business forward, whilst at the same time helping even more individuals in their daily lives.”
In 2014, the government allowed scanning pens to be used in GCSE and A-level exams, which Jack described as “a watershed moment for many children who struggle with illiteracy”
He added: “The tech has changed the outcomes for young people taking exams and they now get the results they deserve – if you can’t read the question, you can’t answer it.
“I’m quite passionate about the need to support people to achieve their goals in life.
“I was lucky to get diagnosed at 14 and there were problems, but there has been a big step change at the UK as leading supporter of people with dyslexia, so things have improved but there’s still a lot more work to be done to diagnose people early on, especially at primary school age.
“Toby and I have quite different skillsets – he’s super organised and I’m not – so having the two of us working alongside each other has been really beneficial.
“Our company was struggling for 12 years then suddenly became booming and scaled up to international exports, we’ve gone from strength to strength. There are a lot of very exciting times ahead, with new tech in the pipeline and beginning to crack the US market.
“I was absolutely gobsmacked when I heard about the Honours List, we’re over the moon, I never thought I’d receive anything like this, it’s a very proud day for us.”
The full list of Wiltshire honorees is here.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here