YORKSHIRE WATER has been awarded the Government's prestigious Charter Mark for excellence in public service.

The company is being presented with the prestigious accolade after an independent panel of judges carried out a scrutiny of the company's customer service policies and procedures.

Comments in the official report on the assessment said: "You scored highly against all criteria with no serious gaps in the way you provide services to the customer", and "We have not identified any areas where you have scope to make significant improvements".

Yorkshire Water's head of customer service, Andrew Dunn, said the award was testimony to the hard work and dedication of its employees.

He added: "We were first awarded the Charter Mark in 1999, and over the last few years we have maintained, and in many areas improved, the high standards of service we offer our customers. If we hadn't, then the Charter Mark would have been taken away from us.

"Even though we are delighted with the judges' comments, we believe there is still room for even further improvement."

Updated: 11:32 Saturday, December 08, 2001