Hard-working advertising staff at the Telegraph & Argus have swept the board at one of the country's top awards ceremonies.

The team scooped eight prizes out of 22 categories at the Newsquest awards for advertising excellence held in Worcestershire, while sister papers the Wharfedale Observer and Ilkley Gazette also notched up a joint award.

Newsquest - parent company of the T&A - is the biggest publisher of regional newspapers in England and Wales.

Top award for the T&A went to its events team of Karen Young and Rosa Rudak, named Best Sales Team of the Year for their work on such popular events as the T&A's Wedding and Christmas fairs.

The judges were highly impressed with their creativity and said: "The events team has developed new revenue streams with the Christmas Fair and introduced other new initiatives. Some very innovative ideas have been created by the team.

"Their entry showed their dedication to their jobs and it can be seen that although there are only two members in the team, they have worked very hard."

The T&A also notched up the main award for its 'Leagues of Their Own' glossy magazine which profiled every amateur football league team in the district.

The magazine was named Best Local Initiative and the judges said it was "a fantastic, original idea which could be repeated in other centres."

Advertising staff were also celebrating the success of their campaign for Bradford builders merchant Uriah Woodhead and Son Ltd, which was feted as best advertisement campaign for being "original and humorous." It had "good illustration and consistent brand awareness for a builders merchant."

And they managed a double coup in that category by being commended for their work on a campaign for Bradford window firm Coral Windows.

The team at the T&A's sister papers, the Wharfedale Observer and Ilkley Gazette, were also handed a top award for their work on a Christmas Ad Attack promotion which saw school children draw pictures for various advertisers.

The judges praised it for being "an attractive feature giving reader interest, getting help from a local school for the content."

A similar advertising section run by the T&A was commended in the Best Non-Regular Supplement category.

The T&A also notched up a success for its gardening supplement How Does Your Garden Grow? in the Best Classified Initiative category.

The Best Niche Standalone awards section saw the T&A's parent company, Newsquest (Bradford) gain a commended for its Home Cooking magazine boasting recipes and food ideas.

The top events team were also handed another scoop with their award for the Christmas Show in the Best Exhibition/Event category.

Regional Managing Director of Newsquest (Bradford), Tim Blott, said: "I am delighted. I have always known that our advertising staff are the best in the country. It's great that it's now official."

John Lee, Head of Advertsing and Commercial Sales, said: "This is a great result for Newsquest (Bradford). All departments have helped contribute to this success and it is nice to be recognised by our own colleagues in the industry as a centre of excellence. My congratulations to everyone concerned."