Outgoing GroceryAid director general Gillian Barker has been awarded the 2016 IGD lifetime achievement award.

Barker was recognised by a group of judges from across the grocery industry for her contribution to the sector.

She spent her entire career in the industry, from her early beginning working on Saturdays in a local convenience store until her time at Sainsbury’s and then at Safeway before joining the charity.

Barker has been at GroceryAid for over 14 years and will be retiring at the end of November 2016. In this time, the charity has grown from a benevolent fund with a fundraising income of £1.4m and 1,100 beneficiaries to an organisation with a fundraising income in excess of £4.5m that supports more than 11,000 current and former industry associates.

Speaking at the IGD awards in London on 18 October, Joanne Denney-Finch, IGD chief executive, said: “I am always impressed by the variety and quality of the submissions we receive and the bar has been set just as high this year. I would like to congratulate all those who entered.”

To find out more about how GroceryAid can help please visit www.groceryaid.org.uk, or email welfare@groceryaid.org.uk