A FIRM from Walters Ash has won an award for its safety record.

Building and Property Defence, a security firm from Walters Ash, received a gold medal at a glittering presentation ceremony at Birmingham Hilton Metropole Hotel.

The awards, given out by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), were held on May 22 and 23.

The awards are designed to recognise management attempts to improve safety at work and to raise awareness of health and safety issues.

They are only presented to organisations that can show constant improving levels of safety year on year.

The companies had to beat off stiff competition from overseas.

John Howard, RoSPA's director of safety policy, said: "We received over 50 entries from abroad including Australia, the USA, China and for the first time, the Soviet Union and Hungary.

"They are now the world's largest workplace health and safety awards programme.

"It reflects many years of communicating the safety message in the UK and the importance that business today places upon it."

A spokesman for RoSPA said: "Management of UK industry has proven again that safety in the workplace is high on the agenda with another record number of winners."