A Bradford health forum has scooped a national award for its work on preventing back injuries.

Last night newsreader Sir Trevor McDonald handed over the award to members of the Bradford Area Occupational Health & Safety Forum at London's Le Meridian Waldorf Hotel.

According to Health & Safety figures the biggest single cause of people taking time off work is back injuries.

To tackle this, the forum set up a mobile drop-in centre which visited Bradford, Shipley and Keighley during the European Week for Safety and Health to show the public how to avoid back injuries. The forum also organised a seminar with Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust for 80 nursing home and residential home staff on patient moving and lifting.

Jenni Danson, of BAOHSF, said: "Although the forum has been operating for seven years, we've only had a full-time worker for the last 12 months so we are all very proud of this achievement. This is the first time we've had any kind of award or recognition of what we are doing and the importance of the forum's work."

BAOHSF is a unique partnership of the private and voluntary sector, trades unions, officers from the Health & Safety executive and various Bradford Council departments.

Councillor Anne Hawkesworth, executive member for the environment, said: "Back pain afflicts large numbers of people and is a problem that is easier to prevent than cure.

"This work by the forum will have made many people aware of what they can do to prevent back damage and should save employers and the public much time and pain."

Presenting the awards, Sir Trevor said: "The continuing success of the European Week for Safety & Health is without doubt good news and as I spend most of my working life dealing with bad news, I am particularly delighted to be associated with it!"