Going up against other finalists, the equipment firm will compete for the prestigious award, with the winner being revealed at the Lloyds Bank National Business Awards gala dinner held on 10 November at Park Lane’s Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Douglas Anderson, joint managing director, said: “We are thrilled that GAP has been recognised as a finalist for both the Employer of the Year and UKTI Growth Business of the Year categories at the National Business Awards. We have worked very hard to ensure that GAP is seen as the employer of choice in the hire industry and our nomination as Employer of the Year verifies this. Our business has grown considerably in the past year, launching 5 new divisions (Survey & Safety Hire, Welfare Services, Event Services, Vehicle Hire and London Tools & Access) that sit alongside our existing Plant & Tool Hire, Lifting Hire & Sales and Non-Mechanical Plant divisions. There’s no doubt that we couldn’t have done this without our talented people.”

An all-encompassing range of industries are represented in the shortlists for this year’s awards, with companies from recruitment and children’s clothing, to pet food and online marketing being selected for the chance to win a coveted Lloyds Bank National Business Award. The scale of the finalists is just as varied, with companies turning over less than a million pounds to over £25 million, employing 20 people or over 70,000 people.

Tom Broughton, programme director of the National Business Awards, said: “The quality and range of this year’s entries exceed even those of last year, which is no mean feat. The draw of being involved with the Lloyds Bank National Business Awards has seen companies from all kinds of industries submit applications, which have been narrowed down using our thorough and comprehensive scoring system. We are now looking forward to the next step in the judging process and meeting some of the finalists face-to-face.”

Finalists were chosen from the hundreds of businesses that entered or were nominated across 18 award categories. They will now prepare for live presentations to expert judges who will decide the overall winners that will be revealed at the awards ceremony on 10 November.