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The winners of these awards deliver consistently excellent customer service. The operators demonstrate their success through sustained effort.

They have shown that they:

• are financially sound
• maintain high operational and engineering standards
• give priority to the Health and Safety of staff and passengers through comprehensive risk management
• invest in their fleet and staff
• form effective partnerships
• identify with and respond to the communities they serve
• always strive to sustain and grow the market for coaches and coach services.

As well as this award for the medium operators of fleets between 16 and 50 vehicles, there are two others for buisinesses with fleets of 15 or fewer and over 51 vehicles.

From the winners of these three awards, the judges chose an overall winner, named UK Coach Operator of the Year.

For each of the categories, customer nominations were sought from group organisers and other industry clients. Nominated operators are also  invited to submit further information to the judges. The judging process also includes 'mystery shopping' of the nominated operators to test their commitment to customer service.

Who could be nominated?

The awards are open to all operators of coaches for hire to the general public or used on tours and excurions.

... and by whom?

Group organisers and other clients who hire coaches on an occasional or regular basis were asked to nominate the coach company which has delivered the best service to their groups.

Gold Award Winners: Excelsior Coaches, Bournemouth, Dorset

This is the third successive victory in this category for Excelsior Coaches.  Quality is the watchword for the business and the whole company ethos is built around delivering the highest possible standards across all aspects of the operation. The company has ridden the recession by offering complete transport solutions rather than simple coach hire and now has several corporate clients. For these and other reasons, the judges were unanimous in making the company winners once more.

Silver Award Winners: Maynes Coaches (Maynes of Buckie)

Maynes has a reputation for quality and reliability which has driven growth in bookings and generates very positive feedback from customers. Established in 1947, Maynes is still a family-owned business covering a broad range of work, from local school contracts to full continental tours. The high standards of the business have been recognised by all of the independently audited accreditation schemes, which is in itself a significant achievement.

Bronze Award Winners: Johnsons Coach and Bus Travel, Henley-in Arden, Warwickshire

Originally established in 1909, Johnsons is still very much a family business with a forward-thinking attitude and an interest in innovation. As well as delivering top-notch customer service, the company also has an incentive scheme to reward loyal clients. Substantial investment in vehicles, training and marketing are all designed to make Johnsons the natural choice for existing and potential customers.

Highly Commended:

Anthony's Travel, Runcorn, Cheshire

Established in the mid-1980s, Anthony's Travel has grown from a single vehicle operation to an impressive modern business with a  fleet of 16 coaches and over 40 members of staff.

Honest and integrity is at the heart of the business and the company prides itself on delivering a level of customer service that would be the envy of a much larger organisation. It has a proactive approach to compliance with regulations and employs specialists to audit driver and vehicle records, as well as driving standards. The judges agreed that Anthony’s Travel certainly punches above its weight.

D J Coaches, Medway

Medway-based DJ Coaches prides itself on delivering high quality coaching products and sets standards which much larger companies would be proud of. A modern, well-presented fleet, along with highly professional staff means that a significant amount of repeat bookings is generated by satisfied customers.