Northern Gas Networks in line for top UK business award

The North of England's gas distributor is going head-to-head with the likes of insurance giant LV= and money lender Wonga for a prestigious national award.

Northern Gas Networks is the only regionally-based business to make the shortlist for the Huawei Customer Focus Award at the National Business Awards

The company, which owns and operates the gas network across the North of England, received praise from category judge Jo Causon, CEO Institute of Customer Management, for going beyond its regulators expectations in service provision and having a customer service strategy embedded across the organisation and into its supplier network.

Northern Gas Networks' CEO Mark Horsley said: "To have our approach to delivering a great customer experience for people across the North of England recognised and shortlisted for this national award is a real achievement.

"Customer care is a top priority - alongside safety - and we remain committed to continually reviewing and improving our standards to ensure we deliver an excellent and consistent standard of service for our customers." 

The gas firm will find out if it has been successful at a ceremony held in London on 13 November, 2012.  It is up against: Bottomline Technologies, LV=, Rackspace, Richmond Housing Partnership, Resonates, UKFast, Wonga, World First and XLN Business Services.

Northern Gas Networks supplies gas to 2.7 million homes across the North East, northern Cumbria and most of Yorkshire.  It is the area's gas emergency  service provider - attending calls to the 0800 111 999 emergency number 365 days a year, free of charge.

 

It invests £91.5 million a year to upgrade ageing metal gas mains with more reliable plastic pipe - ensuring that communities can continue to benefit from a safe and reliable supply of gas.

The National Business Awards revealled its shortlist on 14 August 2012 of 150 of Britain’s leading businesses and business leaders as finalists in the prestigious awards programme. Organisations shortlisted include a range of private, public and third sector companies, including National Grid, Marks and Spencer, and London Early Years Foundation.

All National Business Awards finalists represent an annual turnover in excess of £135 billion and collectively employ over 700,000. They cover activities as diverse as digital marketing, international road haulage and logistics, water engineering and life sciences: sectors that reflect key areas of UK capability with high potential for international expansion. 

The diverse size of the companies entering is also huge – ranging from a business with an annual turnover of less than £50k to high growth and high value companies with multi-billion pound revenues.

Baroness Virginia Bottomley, Chair of Judges said: "This year has been a challenging environment for British businesses: these finalists demonstrate how companies are succeeding in the current climate through innovation, originality and tenacity. It’s good to see a broad range of companies both in sector and size – an impressive representation of the potential British businesses have. Congratulations to all our finalists.”