ESTATE agency Connells, which has two branches in Worcester, picked up a top award at the Estate Agency of the Year Awards at the Hilton London Metropole Hotel.

It won gold in the national estate agency of the year category as part of parent company Connells Group. Rebecca Baker, area director at Connells, said: "We are thrilled to have won this award and to be recognised as part of the top national estate agency group in the UK. This is a fantastic achievement and testimony to both the high quality services we provide and our success at helping customers with their property needs. I am very proud of everyone in the business for their contribution towards this terrific accolade.”

The award judges’ report said that Connells Group is "respected in the industry and a great all-round company operating to a successful formula but always with one eye on innovation".

Award winners were decided following a rigorous judging process by a panel of industry experts, who assessed initial entry submissions before conducting an extensive review of the entrants, which included telephone interviews and mystery shopping exercises. This award follows Connells Group's success at the Lettings Agency of the Year Awards in June, picking up gold in the national lettings agency of the year category.