A professional campaigner who strives to

give Parking attendants a better name while promoting fairer fines for motorists has been honoured by the Queen.

Keith Banbury, the chief executive of the British Parking Association was made an OBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours.

Mr Banbury, 62, a father-of-two from Danehill, near Uckfield works from the association's offices in Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath.

He was one of a string of people in Sussex honoured by the Queen in Her Majesty's 80th birthday honours.

He said he was delighted with the award and viewed it as recognition for the association's efforts to make the industry more acceptable to the public.

He said: "There has been a lot of concern about parking attendants. Some people have said that local authorities are only in it to earn money. What I'm trying to do is change the rules to make it fair."

One of Mr Banbury's aims is make fines fit the crime. He said a motorist caught parking on a double yellow line should not have to pay the same fine as someone caught overstaying on a meter by five minutes."

Mr Banbury said: "The parking attendant is just a foot soldier. If people have a complaint they should go to the local authority and not take it out on the parking attendant."

Others honoured by the Queen in Sussex include a journalist, a writer, a community volunteer and other campaigners for the public good.

A fireman was recognised for his courage and determination while he was in charge of the rescue operation during the Lewes floods in 2000.

Des Prichard, chief fire officer of East Sussex Fire and Rescue, was presented with the Queen's Medal for distinguished service yesterday.

Mr Prichard, 50, from Seaford, who is based in Eastbourne, was also in charge of the response to a fire at the Royal Albion Hotel in Brighton in 1998 and more recently supported crews fighting a fire on board the cruise ship MV Calypso in May.

Mr Prichard, who is married to Ruth, and has a 15-year-old son, Ben, said: "I am delighted to accept this honour and do so on behalf of everyone at East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service."

Outspoken environmental campaigner Selmer Montford becomes an MBE for her relentless mission to save the architectural heritage of Brighton and Hove.

She has been at the heart of campaigns to protect gems such as the West Pier and many of the Regency and other historic buildings in the city.

Selma is secretary of the Brighton Society which was set up in 1973. She said: "I suppose my reputation is one of being quite outspoken and a bit of a big mouth, so I found it really hard to keep the honour a secret and not say anything to my family since I found out three weeks ago. Of course, I am delighted."

She said that the most rewarding campaign was saving the parochial offices in Princes Street about 15 years ago.

Veteran BBC broadcaster Charles Wheeler becomes Sir Charles in the honours list.

He receives a knighthood for services to broadcasting and journalism. Sir Charles who lives at Broadbridge Heath, near Horsham, was best known for many years as the BBC's man in Washington.

Judy Lehmann from Brighton, became an MBE in reward for more than 30 years' service in Sussex's NHS library service.

She was the first person to be appointed librarian for the Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals Trust in the Seventies, when there was no service to speak of.

She has built that up into several libraries containing thousands of books. The opening last year of the £10 million Audrey Emerton education centre for training doctors, nurses and health professionals, where Mrs Lehmann is now based, was a proud moment.

She said: "Our proudest achievement is that we are a place for all NHS staff and students, not doctors, as it was when I started.

She said: "Librarians don't get a lot of recognition other than jokes."

Paul Sanderson, from Littlehampton, has spent years working to improve the run-down area of Wick and is now an MBE.

In 1996, he set up Wick Information Recreation Education (Wire) to work with families on the Wick estate in Littlehampton, which has a large drugs and teenage pregnancy problem.

The project went on to run successful schemes, such as school outings, toddler groups, after-school care, and an alcohol-free nightclub for teenagers.

Writer and musician Peter Thorogood and artist Roger Linton were honoured for their work restoring St Mary's House in Bramber, near Steyning.

They bought the timber framed house house 21 years ago, transformed it back to its medieval glory and set up a trust to ensure the house and gardens remain open to the public.

Wilfred Cass, 81, was rewarded with a CBE for co-founding the Cass Sculpture Foundation, a charity which sits amid 26 acres of ancient woodland on the Sussex Downs.

The sculpture collector put millions of pounds of his own money into the venture to open the foundation 13 years ago and it has turned into a huge success.

David Luckes, the former East Grinstead and Great Britain hockey goalkeeper, received an MBE for his work on the original bid for London 2012 Games.