Morrisons group finance director Richard Pennycook has been named the best in the UK.

Mr Pennycook, 47, scooped the top award at last night’s FDs’ Excellence Awards in London. clinching the FTSE 100 FD of the Year title.

Before joining Morrisons in October 2005, Mr Pennycook was group finance director of RAC, HP Bulmer Holdings, Laura Ashley and JD Wetherspoon. He was also chief executive of Welcome Break Holdings and is currently a non-executive director of York-based housebuilder Persimmon.

After joining the UK’s fourth largest supermarket group he was an architect of the group’s ‘Optimisation Plan’ launched in 2006 to reduce costs and improve margins.

Mr Pennycook, tipped as a potential successor to previous boss Marc Bolland until Dalton Philips was recruited as chief executive last year, was charged with sorting out the financial problems following the difficult £3 billion takeover of Safeway in 2004, which led to Morrisons issuing its first – and so far only – profits warning after 37 years of unbroken growth.

The winner of the FTSE 100 category was chosen using three years-worth of financial information supplied by company data specialist Jordans to uncover genuine excellence in financial management.

Morrisons recently reported a seven per cent increase in turnover to £16.5 billion with underlying profits before tax up 13 per cent to £869m for announced its results for the year to January 30 2011.

The retailer has acquired Kiddicare.com and also invested in FreshDirect, a leading online grocer in the US, as part of its move into internet selling.

The ICAEW Sustainable Business Award was presented to Richard Hutton, finance director of bakery Greggs, which has shops throughout the Bradford district.