An audiologist at Airedale Hospital has received special recognition in a national competition for the fifth year in a row.

Alan Walshaw, who cares for those with hearing difficulties, has received another certificate for his achievement in the UK Audiologist of the Year awards.

He is the only person to be commended in the awards for five consecutive years.

Mr Walshaw, 46, a senior audiologist who has worked at Airedale NHS Foundation Trust for eight years, said: “I’m pretty lucky people have taken the trouble to nominate me.

“It also benefits the hospital by showing it in a positive light.

“We recently stopped promoting the competition within the hospital, so there were no leaflets for patients to fill out as there have been in previous years. So to still be nominated is a very good thing.”

The competition – run by hearing aid battery manufacturer Rayovac and hearing industry publishing group Audio Infos – is judged independently by a panel of industry experts.

Votes for more than 1,000 nominees were cast by hard-of-hearing people across the UK in order to reward professionals who go the extra mile to help their patients.