SOCIAL services staff who provide front-line care and support for thousands of people across North Yorkshire have had their efforts recognised.

The 44 staff work in a variety of areas, including looking after people in their own homes, day centres and in residential care.

The staff in the Hambleton and Richmondshire area are now part of a 149-strong team countywide to have gained nationally-recognised qualifications at a variety of levels for the work they undertake within the community.

These include NVQ qualifications in care, management and customer service, as well as a variety of social work qualifications.

Operations manager Judith Atkinson said: "I'm particularly pleased at the NVQ award to one of our care workers who is dyslexic. It has boosted her self-esteem.

"Generally, the awards have had a big impact on the care we deliver to people in the area, and they are the ones who have reaped the rewards from all the staff who have gained these qualifications."

The county council's executive member for social services, Murray Naylor, said: "It is to their credit that so many of them balance their home life, working life and their study. These awards represent a measure of the high quality of services which the county council is dedicated to deliver."