'I want people to remember we were world's finest'

Graham Knowles helped find a new home for the world-famous Stourbridge Glass Collection

A businessman has said he is "delighted" after being appointed an MBE in the New Year Honours for keeping 400 years of glass-making history alive.

Graham Knowles helped find a new home for the world-famous Stourbridge Glass Collection after councillors closed the Broadfield House Glass Museum.

"I don't think many of the councillors realised the importance of the collection... or the passion there was in the community," he said.

Mr Knowles is one of a number of people from Birmingham and the Black Country to be honoured, including Paralympian Tully Kearney, former West Midlands Mayor Andy Street, and youth leader Tracy Lowe.

Stourbridge and the wider Dudley area was a major glassmaking centre for about four centuries.

It was the lifeblood of many communities and a substantial contributor to Britain's manufacturing strength and national wealth, according to historians.

The Stourbridge Glass Museum opened in 2022

When Dudley Council closed Broadfield House for financial reasons, Mr Knowles was among those who stepped in to protect that legacy.

Some 10,000 items are now held at the new museum, which opened in 2022.

The 78-year-old, who is the chief executive of the family-run Hulbert Group, has enjoyed a long career in business and was director of a group that developed The Mailbox in Birmingham.

But he is also passionate about heritage, and told the BBC it was vital the Black Country's glass-making history was preserved for generations to come.

"All of the families in the Stourbridge area would have a friend or a colleague that had been in the glass industry," he said.

"It was massive. We were the finest glass makers in the world at the turn of the century and I think it's important we respect that heritage, preserve it for the future and celebrate it."

Tully Kearney becomes an OBE after her double gold medal-winning performance at the 2024 Paralympic Games

Among those also recognised in the honours list is Tully Kearney, who has been appointed OBE for services to swimming after winning two gold medals at the Paris Paralympics.

The Walsall athlete was previously made an MBE after winning gold and silver at the Tokyo Games.

Balbir Singh Khanpur from Smethwick has been awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to Bhangra Music and to Punjabi Culture in the West Midlands.

The world-renowned artist formed Bhujhangy Group in Smethwick in 1967 alongside his late brother and has been continuously performing and recording music since then.

The 2025 New Year's Honours List also includes a knighthood for former West Midlands Mayor Andy Street

Other honours recipients from Birmingham and the Black Country include:

• Andy Street, from Birmingham, is made a knight for public service as mayor of the West Midlands

• Professor Paul Stewart, from Solihull, is appointed a CBE for services to medical science at Leeds University

• Michael Donoghue, from Walsall, is appointed an OBE for services to education as CEO of John Taylor Multi-Academy Trust

• Tully Kearney, from Walsall, becomes an OBE for services to swimming after winning double gold at the Paris Paralympics

• Claire Darke, from Wolverhampton, is appointed an MBE for services to local government, disability and suicide prevention as mayor of Wolverhampton

• Rabiyah Latif, from Walsall, is appointed an MBE for services to faith and community cohesion for her work with Near Neighbours

• Tracy Lowe, from Oldbury, is appointed an MBE for services to young people as founder of Wallace Youth Project

• Michael Oakes, from Birmingham, is appointed an MBE for services to dairy farming as chair of the National Diary Board and the National Farmers' Union

• Patricia White, from Halesowen, is made an MBE for services to unemployed people as chief executive of Suited for Success

• Joan Lockley, from Walsall, is awarded a BEM for services to wildlife as founder of the West Midlands Hedgehog Rescue

• Deborah Lowe, from Rowley Regis, is awarded a BEM for services to musical theatre in the West Midlands as chair and director of Youth Onstage