Centenary Awards
John Bridge OBE
John has achieved significant success in all his roles over many years, having operated at the highest level in the corporate, public and charity sectors and forged strong and meaningful relationships at all levels within these. He has a great passion to enhance the ability of organisations to succeed and uses his extensive experience and expertise as a Chief Executive and Non-Executive Chair & Director in a number of different organisations – including Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce .
A Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CharteredFCIPD) – for over 30 years, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (FCILT) – for over 20 years, and a Freeman of the City of London.
Iain Crighton MBE
Iain Crighton is a Peterborough businessman and community leader whose decades of work have shaped the city’s business and sporting landscape. Previously the owner of a local garage and cycle shop, he built a reputation for civic engagement alongside his commercial career. He was part of the team that led the merger of the Peterborough and Cambridge Chambers of Commerce into the formation of the current Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce as Chairman for seven years before becoming Honorary President, championing local business growth. As Chair and founder of Living Sport, he expanded access to sport across Peterborough, including inclusive facilities for children with disabilities, now as Chair of local charity Little Miracles. He also chaired Inspire Peterborough and is currently working as a Business Start-Up Coach and Strategic Engagement Lead at Allia Future Business Centre in Peterborough, mentoring entrepreneurs. In 2012 he was one of the Olympic Games torch bearers in Peterborough and in 2016, he received an MBE for services to Sport in Peterborough, recognising a career devoted to strengthening the city’s business community and sporting opportunities alike.
Eve Taylor DBE
Dame Eve Taylor DBE OBE is a distinguished beauty therapist, aromatherapy practitioner, educator and entrepreneur whose career has helped shape modern professional beauty care. After studying beauty care in London, she opened her first salon, Adam and Eve, in 1963 and established Eve Taylor Beauty Preparations Limited in 1968, now Eve Taylor (London) Limited with its HQ located in Peterborough. Dame Eve translated individual aromatic treatments into practical products, methods and education for working therapists. Her pre-blended oils and treatment systems helped make personalised aromatherapy more accessible and repeatable within vocational practice worldwide. She also contributed to teaching, examinations and industry development, and authored Face, Figure and Fashion in 1968. Her lasting achievement is the practical bridge that she created between aromatherapy, beauty treatment, professional education, product development and business. Awarded an OBE in 2008 and a DBE in 2024, she still remains an influential industry figure still pioneering many new ideas and products across the world.
Phil Elmer
For more than fifty years Phil has combined professional excellence with an unwavering commitment to serving others leaving a lasting impact across the city and wider region. Phil began his career in surveying progressing from Surveyor to Senior Surveyor and ultimately Partner. He was elected a Professional Associate of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in 1975 and a Fellow in 1983. Throughout his career he played a key role in major developments including Peterborough Freemans Mail Order the Peterborough Regional Swimming Pool and J Sainsbury’s Bretton development.
He later became an Equity Partner in a leading London Chartered Surveying practice overseeing projects including London J Sainsbury stores and Savacentres across the UK. After serving as Managing Director of a Construction Management Company and leading his own development business he joined CBA in Peterborough in 1998. He became Managing Director and subsequently Chairman of the CBA Group CBA Asbestos CBA Environmental and CBA Projects positions he continues to hold today.
His contribution to the business community has also been significant. As Chairman of the Construction Sector of Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce and later a Board Member he worked to support local businesses encourage collaboration and promote economic growth across Peterborough and Cambridgeshire. Phil has also devoted considerable time to charitable fundraising. He served as Quizmaster for Barnardo’s fundraising events between 2009 and 2015 for NSPCC events from 2016 onwards and for Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce since 2008 helping raise valuable funds for important causes.
What makes Phil’s contribution exceptional is not simply the number of roles he has held but the consistency dedication and voluntary service he has demonstrated throughout each one. His leadership has strengthened clubs charities and businesses; his fundraising has supported individuals facing adversity and young athletes pursuing their dreams; and his vision has helped build organisations that continue to benefit Peterborough today. For more than five decades Phil Elmer has embodied the values of service leadership and community spirit. His impact can be measured not only in the organisations he has led but in the countless lives he has touched through his generosity commitment and dedication. He is a truly deserving nominee for the Community Impact Award.