Bernice Marie Newton (left) with the Townhouse Coffee team

A coffee shop owner in Preston city centre has been recognised for all she’s doing to help lift up one of the city’s main streets.

Bernice Marie Newton was given the City Star Award at the city centre business awards during Tuesday (9 April).

Her business Townhouse Coffee and Brew Bar also picked up the Independent Business of the Year Award.

Bernice has helped organise a big clean up of Friargate, where Townhouse is based, with businesses down the street joining forces to power-wash the street, repair faults and pick up litter.

Bernice Marie Newton picking up her award

Bernice Marie Newton said: “Congratulations to all the finalists, the Town House team, to Bid for a fantastic night and to everyone who voted and supports us, we only achieved this with you walking through our doors.”

There was also praise and recognition for one of the mainstays of the city’s live music and clubbing scene.

Peter Alexander was granted the Preston Business Improvement District Special Recognition Award.

Peter Alexander makes his way to the stage

DJing aroun the city for decades Pete started at The Warehouse before becoming owner-operator of Blitz.

He’s represented the city’s music scene on a number of national panels.

The Smiles Better Awards took place in Evoque with BBC Radio Lancashire’s John Gillmore and former Rock FM DJ Danny Bee hosting.

Read more: New monthly Makers Market coming to Fishergate

ITV news presenter Paul Crone made a guest appearance to hand out awards in the Outstanding Achievement in Leisure and Outstanding Achievement in Retail awards.

Paul Crone presenting awards

This saw the moment when Simon Rigby, who wasn’t present, roundly booed by many tables in the room when announced as a finalist for the Outstanding Achievement in Leisure Award for his work at the Guild Hall. It follows recent stories on Blog Preston and other media outlets about payment problems at the venue.

Seventeen awards were given out in total including a new award for Market Trader of the Year Aaward for the city’s new Market Hall.

Adrian Livesey’s butchers, run by Market Trader Association chairman Sam Livesey, picked up the award.

Preston BID’s Mark Whittle said: “These awards are always hotly contested with healthy competition between nominees, which is no bad thing. The city centre is awash with great people working very hard, in great businesses, and it’s good to recognise them publicly; they are the very reason many people visit Preston.”

More than 68,000 votes were cast by the public across the categories and the five or six people or organisations in each category with the highest votes were invited along on the night. All awards are decided by a public vote, apart from the Special Recognition Award.

Congratulations to all of our It’s Smiles Better Awards Winners 2019! We hope everybody who’s attended tonight has had a wonderful time and we will see you all again next year! pic.twitter.com/2uGECxrWJy — Preston City Centre BID (@BIDPreston) April 9, 2019

Here’s the full list of finalists and the winner in each category:

Bar of the year

Northern Way

Plau – winner

Roper Hall

Wings and Beer

Yates

Plau bar team

Club of the year

Baluga

Evoque

Popworld

Switch

Warehouse – winner

Club of the Year winner The Warehouse

Restaurant of the year

Angelos

Bistrot Pierre

Turtle Bay

Nandos – winner

We Don’t Give A Fork

The Nando’s Preston team

Pub of the year

Hogarths

Plug and Taps

Ships and Giggles

Twelve Tellers – winner

The Adelphi

The Twelve Tellers team

Personality of the year

Brian Hudson – Tokyo Jo’s Reunion

DJ Ben – The Warehouse – winner

Darren Ofsarnie – Switch

Mark Freejack – Evoque

Matthew Wood – Krispy Kreme

Lauren from The Warehouse picked up DJ Ben’s Award

Leisure manager of the year

Adam Coulson – Twelve Tellers

Dave Brown – Switch – winner

Joe Parr – Wings & Beers

Mark O’Rourke – Mark O’Rourke Group

Stacey Penney – Evoque

Dave Brown from Switch

Retail manager of the year

David Bullock – Preston Market – winner

Gordon Gibson – Action Records

Matthew Wood – Krispy Kreme

Michelle Littlefair – PDSA

Sue Dodwell – Greggs

Shirah Bamber from Preston Council picked up the award for Dave Bullock

Multiple retailer of the year

Ann Summers

Greggs

Krispy Kreme

Mark O’Rourke Group – winner

Top Shop

Mark O’Rourke shares a joke with Gilly

Independent retailer of the year

Action Records

Cafune – South American Cafe Roast

Townhouse Coffee and Brew Bar – winner

Yog Yums

Townhouse team

Best customer service – Leisure

Dan Cowell – Wings and Beers

Ellen Cunliffe – Twelve Tellers

Henry Fairclough – Ships and Giggles Lee

Lee Johnson – Switch – winner

Sean Devlin – Get Staffed

Lee Johnson from Switch nightclub

Best customer service – Retail

Gordon Gibson – Action Records

Matthew Wood – Krispy Kreme

Paul Roscoe – HMB

Sue Dodwell – Greggs – winner

Sam Eaves – Ann Summers

Sue Dodwell from Greggs

Outstanding achievement in retail

Adrian Livesey – Livesey’s Butchers

Andrew Stringer – St George’s

Dean Yates – Roast

Gordon Gibson – Action Records – winner

Matthew Wood – Krispy Kreme

Gordon Gibson with his Outstanding Achievement Award

Outstanding achievement leisure

Aimee Massey – Bistrot Pierre

Darren Ofsarnie – Switch

Kyle Perkins – Yates

Lisa Billington – Warehouse – winner

Simon Rigby – Guild Hall

Lisa Billington from The Warehouse

City Star

Bernice Newton – Townhouse Coffee and Brew Bar – winner

Ed Walker – Blog Preston

Ranvir Singh – UCLan/ITV

Simon Meighan – Wings and Beer

Simon Rigby – Guild Hall

Bernice celebrates

Market Trader of the Year

Adrian Livesey’s Butchers – winner

Brew + Bake

Capelli Remi

Cherry Pie

Redmans of Preston

Adrian Livesey’s butchers team

Event of the year

Bongo’s Bingo – Guild Hall – winner

EvanFest – Ships and Giggles

GlastonFerret – The Ferret

Preston Pride – Flag Market

Record Store Day – Action Records

Bongo’s Bingo team picking up their award

Special Recognition Honour – Peter Alexander

Peter Alexander presented with his award

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