The winners of our awards for coach operation will deliver consistently excellent customer service. The operators will demonstrate their success through sustained effort.

They will show 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.

There are three categories, based on fleet size (see below for the definitions). From the winners of these three awards, the judges will decide on an overall winner, who will be UK Coach Operator of the Year. This page describes the result of that competition.

Winner, Gold Award

Maynes Coaches, Buckie, Moray

Maynes is a family operated business with over forty employees and thirty coaches. It has built a good reputation across Scotland for high quality vehicles and service. It has built an excellent reputation across Scotland for high quality vehicles and service.

The judges were particularly impressed by the tight market focus, and the emphasis on quality and customer service – recruiting a new staff member to focus specially on customer relationships.

The judges commented on the excellent KPIs and continued investment in new vehicles, praising Maynes as a good example of a really well-run family business. There’s a real passion in the business and this comes across.

Winner, Silver Award

The Kings Ferry, Gillingham, Kent

'Outstanding' was how the panel of judges described The Kings Ferry. From marketing and profitability to staff relations and customer service, The Kings Ferry continues to excel in every area making it one of the true industry leaders. 

External audits enable the company to track its achievements – and impressive they certainly are: in customer satisfaction, regular scores top 90%; in staff training, the business has achieved the coveted Silver status in the Investors in People scheme; and in safety, where a recent British Safety Council audit gave them a five star ranking. This sits alongside their one hundred percent MOT pass rate over the last two years.

Last year, The Kings Ferry maintained momentum, adding four more commuter routes in the Maidstone area. It also bought the highly respected company Clarkes of London, boosting its position in the private hire market.

Winner, Bronze Award

Anthony's Travel

Established in 1985 and now running 16 vehicles, Cheshire based Anthony's Travel describes itself as a unique family-owned coach operation, which makes its own path in the industry, remaining ahead of the game and striving to deliver the very best in coach travel experience for its clients, community partners and stakeholders. The company has combined strong branding and unique marketing to become one of the most recognised small coach operators in the country, priding itself on a personal yet professional family approach for a wide variety of clients.

The judges commented that Anthony's Travel continues to punch above its weight for the size of the company with a genuine involvement in the community.