BOLTON Council staff who have gone the extra mile for residents are to be celebrated with a special award.

Town Hall chiefs are asking readers to vote for the winner of the Best Customer Care gong at this year’s Bolton’s Best awards, which marks the achievements of local authority staff.

The award, support by The Bolton News, is for the person, team or project that has gone above and beyond to deliver outstanding service to customers.

Four teams have been nominated this year, including the Building Support Officers — formerly the porters — by the Befriending Refugees and Asylum Seekers charity for their professionalism and approachability.

The Halliwell UCAN team received the most nominations for the public for their work offering a range of service for residents, including computer skills, exercise classes and money advice.

The Furnished Tenancy Team was nominated for its work assisting more than 1,300 families with furniture after falling on hard times, and the Home Support Re-ablement Team for running the service which helps people stay living independently.

Sean Harriss, chief executive of Bolton Council, said: “The awards are extremely important in the current climate for supporting staff and encouraging morale and motivation.

“They celebrate and reward staff for the excellent work they do to help us deliver our objectives and achieve our vision to improve the quality of life for everyone in the Bolton family.

“I am always very impressed by the high standard of all those who are nominated – it’s a great testament to the hard work that staff put in during these challenging times to improve the lives of Bolton people.

“The Best Customer Care category celebrates all those who work directly with residents and the finalists have been nominated by members of the public. Please take a moment to read through the nominations and vote for who you think is Bolton’s Best.”

You can vote for the Best Customer Care winner by emailing boltonsbest@bolton.gov.uk and sending the name of your choice.

Voting closes at 5pm on Friday.

Votes will then be counted and the winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on Wednesday, December 10.