UK Section's Outstanding Contribution Award
The UK executive committee invites applications each year for this annual award which recognises individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the UK dredging industry; for example, by years of service, promotion of the industry or contribution towards inspiring, informing or founding best practices and innovation in the industry.
The award is open to all individuals currently employed, or who have recently retired and is open to all levels of participants, with an emphasis for rewarding those who may otherwise receive limited formal recognition (for example project or support staff).
2025 - John Wheatley
John has worked in the Conservancy Department at PD Ports for 48 years.
In 1977, John started work as a seaman, aged 16, on one of the company’s small utility vessels, MV Seaton, for two years. During that time, he learned the layout of the River Tees and Hartlepool dredged channels, supporting the dredging vessels at work. Following this, he became a relief deck hand working on all the company’s fleet of dredging and utility vessels.
In 1979, John took a job as a cook AB (Able Seafarer) on the company’s shiny new vessel, the Heortnesse, a Trailer Suction Hopper Dredger (TSHD). Although his tea making skills were ok, his cooking skills left a lot to be desired, he reckons he could burn water! So, in 1980, John took the opportunity to be a full-time Deck AB on the TSHD Cleveland County, on which he stayed for the next 10 years developing his knowledge of dredging the Tees & Hartlepool areas.
In 1990, after passing the RYA days skipper course at night school, John returned to the Heortnesse to become the vessel’s Senior Pipe man (Dredge Master) for the next two years, taking a keen interest in the dredging operations of the vessel.
In 1992, John qualified as 1st Officer of the Watch and for the next nine years he covered as Relief Master until 2001, when he qualified as Vessel Master with a UK Certificate of Competency, continuing as Chief Officer until 2006. He then took the Masters job on the MV Wilton, which taught him how to handle vessels with multi directional propulsion.
John also commanded the port’s grab dredger, the MV Seal Sands, using wires and anchors to dredge alongside berths. During the two years he spent on this vessel, he gained significant experience of handling and buoy tendering the dredging vessel, which would help with his career path.
In 2008, John decided to leave the MV Wilton and MV Seal Sands, and to go back to his first love, the TSHD Heortnesse, this time as Vessel Master. For the next 14 years, John was the Senior Master, and in 2021 he helped oversee the life extension of the vessel, with a new bridge lay out and operating system.
In 2023, PD Ports placed an order for a brand-new Hybrid TSHD, The Emerald Duchess, which was delivered to the River Tees in August 2024. As a Senior Master, John was involved with the design of this vessel, and took part in the vessel’s dredging and sea trials in Holland.
John has been an outstanding and committed member of the dredging community for many years. His career path very much epitomising the traditional port development pathway and evolving with technology, equipment and standards of safety and compliance.
The range of vessels he has operated and mastered is quite unique, and very much aligned to the “port owned and operated” ethos at PD Ports. John has not only operated a wide range of vessels, but has been studious in passing on his skills and knowledge through patient mentoring and encouragement, both to crew and a range of management staff.
John remains a role model for new staff entering the dredging industry, and has passed on a great deal of knowledge, experience and professionalism to our recently qualified Officer of the Watch cadets. His personal traits of calm professionalism can only stand them in good stead for the future.
2025 - Jayne Hornsby
In 2004, Jayne joined Land & Water Group, in the role of Purchase Ledger Clerk. Jayne then moved into the position of Estimating Coordinator before becoming Land & Water’s Head of Business Development and Estimating. Last year after a personal health battle Jayne took a more focused role as Estimating Manager, but her track record speaks for itself and is characterised by her distinctive loyalty and drive.
Whilst Jayne was building her career with Land & Water Group, she had the opportunity to go back to college to obtain an HNC in Civil Engineering which complimented the National Certificate Construction, CSCS Visitor and Frontline Manager qualifications she had already obtained.
As Business Development Manager, Jayne was active in many markets but particularly, the inland dredging market. Land & Water has been represented on the CEDA UK committee for many years, with Jayne holding a place since 2020. During this time, she has worked with a group of professionals from across the dredging fraternity to improve and innovate within the dredging community, sharing project experience, best practice, constraints and information to improve how we operate.
As a family-run business, values form the core of everything the Land & Water Group does. Jayne believes that in each project the company can make a difference and is passionate about benefiting the communities in which the teams work. Jayne embraces a holistic approach in all aspects of her role, whether this is dealing with people, the environment or planning for the future.
Women make up only around 14% of construction industry professionals. Jayne wants to challenge the misconception around the industry and highlight the many rewards and benefits of working in it. She knows first-hand that the construction industry presents invaluable opportunities for career progression and personal development, and encourages others to explore it. As an advocate for women in civil engineering, Jayne is committed to nurturing young talent within the industry and is dedicated to training and sharing her expertise with Land & Water’s apprentices to help them progress.
Jayne’s loyalty and commitment to the company have helped to enable Land & Water to become a go to service provider for engineering in environments where land meets water.
2024 - Nick Bray
Nick was an owner and Director of Dredging Research Ltd., which was subsequently bought by HR Wallingford where Nick then worked for 10 years as a Consultant.
Nick led the writing of the seminal dredging text book Dredging: a Handbook for Engineers working with his co-authors Anthony Bates and John Land. The first edition was published in 1979 and the Second Edition in 1997. The text was the international “go-to” reference book on the topic for over 25 years and is still in use today 45 years on! Nick also was Editor of the text book Environmental Aspects of Dredging (2008) and author of the 2009 CIRIA Dredging Cost Standards.
Nick was an incredibly active member of CEDA during his time in the industry, taking part in numerous commissions and working groups and forging friendships throughout the industry internationally.
2024 - Matthew Hellyer
Matthew started his career with Van Oord in 1985, having previously spent three years in the Merchant Navy.
The first twenty years were spent mainly working on a variety of vessels including Water Injection Dredgers, Trailing Suction Hopper Dredgers, Grab Dredgers, Split Hopper Barges and Backhoe Dredgers, where his career progressed from Deck Hand through to Captain on The Baldur and The Odin, two of Van Oord’s Water Injection Dredgers. Matthew furthered his career as a land-based Supervisor and later a Works Manager delivering a variety of predominantly maintenance dredging and coastal management projects throughout the UK and Ireland.
In later years, Matthew focused on project related quality, health, safety and environmental management, supporting project teams to ensure compliance and the achievement of best practice. He promoted the practical implementation of QHSE requirements and was a member of Van Oord’s Health and Safety Consultative Committee. Matthew was also a leader in promoting the mental well-being of site staff, becoming Van Oord’s first fully trained site based Mental Health First Aider.
During his career spanning almost 40 years in the marine construction and dredging sector, Matthew demonstrated an exemplar commitment to the maintenance and development of safe working environment. Alongside his technical and operational experience, Matthew developed excellent relationships with clients, stakeholders and project teams. He is well thought of by all as a trusted pair of hands and someone you can always go to for information, advice and a general sounding board.
2023 - John Brien
Chartered civil engineer, John, joined Harwich Haven Authority in 1986 and oversaw all activities related to the conservancy of Harwich Harbour and the navigation approach channel, which included both capital and maintenance dredging works.
Before his retirement in the late summer of 2023, John led a major, and nationally significant, £130 million capital dredging project with joint-venture contractors Boskalis Westminster and Van Oord to deepen the approach channel and inner Harbour to a depth of -16 metres below Chart Datum.
The additional depth ensures deep-water access for the growing breed of mega-sized vessels in operation and futureproofs accessibility into the UK’s largest container port, the Port of Felixstowe.
A CEDA spokesperson commented: “John has been a keen and vocal advocate for the dredging sector, including serving on the CEDA UK committee for over 10 years.”
“Notably, Harwich Haven Authority’s previous capital dredging project in 1998/2000, which was led by John, was one of the first major projects in the UK to be tested under the Habitats Regulations. John created a highly innovative program of mitigation, including recycling fine sediment into the estuary system. In addition, his post project monitoring was recognized as an example of best practice by the industry.”
2022 - Nick Smith
Nick Smith has recently retired from the Canal & River Trust (and his role on CEDA UK’s committee) following 30+ years involved in dredging our inland waterways.
A Mining Surveyor by trade, Nick joined the Trust’s predecessor, British Waterways, in 1990 to help obtain Waste Management Licences for the organisation’s 200+ dredging disposal sites. He enjoyed a career that included managing the largest number of waste disposal licences held by a single organisation in the UK, supervising dredging works, helping to restore the Scottish Lowland canals, representing inland dredging interests to UK government and internationally, guiding colleagues across the Trust on legal waste management requirements and saving inland waterways managers £millions through his efforts on legislation and Landfill Tax exemptions.
Nick’s experiences evolved into him becoming an expert on all legislation to do with inland dredging and disposal of dredged arisings. In this position, he delivered a number of outstanding contributions that benefited the wider waterways management community and all inland waterway users. He also represented the UK’s inland waterways in many international forums and was a member of CEDA UK’s Committee. Finally, as a team leader for many years, he launched the careers of several younger colleagues in the dredging and environmental management fields both within the waterways and outside.
2022 - Peter de Vaal and Frank Weston
Peter and Frank were jointly nominated. Two minds with over 100 years of dredging experience between them and over 50 years each with Boskalis – words that are unlikely to be repeated in Boskalis or any other dredging company anytime soon. Frank Weston joined, what was then Westminster Dredging Company Ltd in 1966, aged 16 as a cabin boy, based in the company’s yard in Bromborough on Merseyside. Peter de Vaal similarly joined in 1968. Both have worked for “the Wessie” and now Boskalis Westminster ever since and, not only that, other siblings and indeed, Peter’s father and son, have worked and continue to work for the company – true dredging families!
Frank officially “retired” a few years ago but continues to work for the company on an ad hoc basis providing his colleagues with his wise council on many different aspects of getting the job done safely and efficiently. Peter is trying to “slow down” and work towards retirement in the next year or so.
But, as with many long-time servers in the dredging industry, once it gets into the blood and under the finger nails, it is hard to let go.
Both Frank and Peter bring professionalism, enthusiasm, a wealth of practical knowledge and a sense of esprit de corps to any project and to their colleagues around them. They have been in the dredging industry longer than the existence of CEDA (by some ten years!). They have seen the dredging industry change massively over fifty years, from what it was then, to the high tech, highly automated and safety conscious industry that it is today. They have not only adapted to that change but have also made great contributions to that change. They have always been very keen to pass on their knowledge and experiences to the youngest of our personnel, treating them with respect, keeping them safe and giving them room to develop their skills with independence and just the right amount of hands-on management.
Frank and Peter have been part of the evolution of the dredging industry over the last fifty years, not just bystanders.
2021 - Farrell McCullough
Farrell started working in the dredging industry around 1965, where he was first employed by “London Dredging” on the bucket dredger “Stewart Clan”. Whilst working for “London Dredging”, which was eventually absorbed within the Boskalis group, Farrell worked mainly on the Thames and in Harwich, but also spent time in Nigeria. Around 1975, Farrell joined “Nash Dredging”, this later becoming part of what is now the Van Oord group. Subsequent to this move, the final one in his career, the majority of Farrell’s time was spent managing Van Oord’s operations on the Thames and Medway, in particular the coordination of water injection dredging activities. Having worked within the UK dredging industry for over 55 years, Farrell is a most worthy recipient of CEDA UK’s first outstanding contribution award.