CALDERDALE Council has been recognised for putting the accent on safety.

The local authority won the Public Safety Award at the 2011 Government Business Awards.

The award recognised measures taken by the council to ensure the safety of its workforce who drive on council business and the safety of the public using council services, such as community buses and mobile libraries.

The announcement was made at the awards at Twickenham Stadium.

Twenty prizes covering categories such as procurement, building, facilities management, human resources and finance were presented by Bill Turnbull, of BBC Breakfast.

The Public Safety award recognises a local authority or other public sector body which has strived to improve the level of service it provides in helping to protect the public from accidental injury.

David Short, Calderdale’s road safety project manager, received the award on behalf of the council.

Council leader Janet Battye said: “A lot of people have been involved in improving our safety on the roads and I am extremely pleased that our approach has been recognised.

“We have a crucial role to play in reducing work-related road incidents and we will keep looking at initiatives to continue to improve the safety of our employees and other road users.”