Annette Bruton has dedicated more than 40 years of her life to public service. As the judges put it: “She is pretty incredible.”

Bruton has played a major role in Scottish public life, holding senior posts at government agencies, local authorities and, most recently, as principal and chief executive of Edinburgh College, a job she held for three years until her retirement last August.

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Under her leadership, the college - one of the largest in Scotland - has turned its finances around and increased its student numbers. After starting her career as a geography teacher in Dundee, Bruton worked in roles supporting pupils with special educational needs and disability, managing children’s care services and overseeing Scottish examinations reform.

She also chaired the East Lothian Poverty Commission as well as the board of the Scottish Poetry Library. In 2001, Bruton became one of Scotland’s inspectors of education. Four years later, she was named chief inspector at HM Inspectorate of Education, the former Scottish government agency responsible for inspecting standards in schools and colleges - a role she held until 2009.

She then moved to Aberdeen City Council to become its director of education, culture and sport. In her three years there, she oversaw an increase in educational attainment and the introduction of a new cultural strategy. A passionate advocate of lifelong learning, Bruton set an example for her students at Edinburgh College by enrolling on a textiles course herself. As the colleagues who put her name forward for the award said: “At her core, Annette is a teacher and she has continued coaching and developing others.”