14th June 2021
Iain Nairn, who is a Director for Leonard Curtis in the North East, has been made an MBE in the Queen’s Honours list. He has received the honour for services to Physical Disabilities Cricket.
Based in County Durham, Iain has been an integral part of the England Physical Disabilities cricket squad for eight years, five of those as Captain before retiring from international cricket at the end of 2019. He has a prosthetic right leg.
He represented his county up to the age of 18 and played for Chester-le-Street CC in able-bodied cricket before joining the England Physical Disabilities squad in 2012, shortly after its creation. This coincided with Iain’s first stint at Leonard Curtis, in its Birmingham office.
He became England Captain in 2014 and led the team to victory in the first ever global Physical Disabilities Cricket tournament the following year, lifting the trophy in the T20 World Series.
In 2019 he guided England to the final of the Physical Disabilities World Series in Worcester, a tournament that shone a light on the worldwide growth of physical disabilities cricket.
On retirement he had represented England more than 20 times in his career and has played a huge part in the growth of disabilities cricket and widening participation.
An outstanding leader, he was a mentor to younger players and helped them to develop their interpersonal skills and personalities outside of the game.
He recognised that a lot of disabled people suffer with self-confidence and self-worth issues and how using the power of sport could address these.
He is widely regarded as a ‘model professional’ and like all disabilities cricketers, has balanced a full-time job and his family commitments throughout his England career.
He led from the front in his five years of captaincy, and during this time the standard of physical disabilities cricket has risen immensely.
In retirement, he continues to be a positive force for cricket in this country and our physical disabilities players will continue to benefit from the foundations he has laid.
Iain commented: “I am very proud, and totally amazed, to be recognised in this way. It’s the ultimate honour. My experiences in my professional life, supporting businesses through challenging times, helped me develop the skills needed to lead England on and off the field and make the impact I did. Now, having been through challenges on the pitch and unique experiences off it, I’m using that knowledge to enhance my professional skills too. “
Dan Booth, Director at Leonard Curtis Business Solutions Group, who re-recruited Iain to a business leadership role in its Gateshead office earlier this year, said he wasn’t surprised by the news.
“Iain is a highly determined, resilient individual, who uses his skills and life experiences to inspire others. In our business he leads SME owners through restructuring solutions with great empathy, and one eye on what’s really important in life. We are immensely proud to have him in our team. Congratulations from everyone here.”