A college director has been shortlisted for a prestigious national skills award.

Burnley College’s director of skills and innovation, Neil Burrows, has been shortlisted for the Enginuity Skills Awards.

Run by Enginuity, the not-for-profit organisation dedicated to finding new ways to close UK engineering and manufacturing skills gaps, this annual ceremony celebrates the brightest and best in UK engineering and manufacturing talent and the organisations championing skills development.

Mr Burrows has been nominated for the Skills Champion Award, sponsored by EAL, which celebrates an individual who commits their heart and soul to training and developing others.

Mr Burrows has proven to be a true ambassador for skills delivery for Burnley College, having bolstered the apprenticeship programme in a variety of sectors, particularly engineering and manufacturing.

He has helped to obtain more than 1,000 employer partners and spearheaded investment in cutting-edge technology for the college.

This year’s event takes place on June 29, at the Park Plaza London Riverbank, and will be attended by leaders from the UK’s engineering and manufacturing industries.

As well as being in the running for the Skills Champion Award, Mr Burrows could also pick up the Best of British Engineering Award which will be decided on the evening of the ceremony, from the individual winners of the other categories.

Chief executive of Enginuity, Ann Watson said: “At Enginuity, we seek to inspire and engage young people with the careers available in engineering and manufacturing.

“Mr Burrows is a great example of this, having acted as a champion of advanced manufacturing and engineering and built strong industry partnerships to position Burnley College as a skills leader.

“The calibre of entries this year is perhaps the highest yet. Making the shortlist is a huge achievement, showing that Burrows is a real innovator working to make a difference.”