AN East Lancashire paint firm is one of just a handful of companies to receive a prestigious Investor in People Gold award.

Crown Paints, in Hollins Road, Darwen, won the award after being described as ‘well ahead of the curve’ in areas including sustainability, community involvement and charitable support.

At the time of its assessment, just over three per cent of organisations nationwide had achieved the status.

Assessors also pointed out a strong team ethic, a working environment that creates a feel-good factor and the company’s supportive approach to work-life balance.

Investors In People assessor John O’Sullivan said: “The achievement of the Gold recognition is thoroughly merited, as Crown has demonstrated many of the characteristics associated with high performance workplaces and world-class people management.

“The assessment represented a first-class example of an organisation achieving sustained levels of high performance through its people.

“It was clearly evident that people believe it to be a great place to work.

“An example is in the way Crown handles low employee turnover.

“Due to the fact the number of people who leave the company is well below the industry average, a consequence is that opportunities for career progression via the promotion route can be limited.

“However, in response to this, Crown has adopted an excellent approach, which focuses on giving individuals additional responsibility, such as training instructor and safety representative roles, as well as providing the necessary support and development for multi-skilling opportunities.”

Joe Devitt, managing director, said: “Achieving this gold standard is a testimony to the hard work and commitment of the team.

“We are delighted all this hard work has been recognised with this award.”