THE borough has won national recognition for a pioneering scheme to make the workplace safer.

The local authority earned a coveted HELA Award for Innovation from the Health and Safety Executive for its pilot "Back in Work in Bury" project.

Some 110 businesses were given assistance, from the retail, food, construction and warehousing sectors to industrial and office work.

The council's partners included Bury Business Environment Association, the physiotherapy department of Bury Health Care NHS Trust, and the Health and Safety Executive in Manchester.

Councillor Pam Walker, public protection spokesman, said: "The project is all about preventing back problems occurring in the workplace and helping existing sufferers to obtain support.

"We believe that the lessons learned in Bury through this multi-agency initiative will spearhead new ways of how we tackle an old problem."

Coun Walker said that musculo-skeletal injuries, apart from causing great pain to individuals, also cost the country millions of pounds in lost hours each year.

"Hopefully the advice given to employers over the last 18 months will make a difference locally and nationally," she added.

THE project will be extended into other areas of occupational health and safety.

The partnership, plus Bury and Rochdale Health Authority, has secured SRB funding to focus on firms in East Bury. Businesses who want this free help should call 253 5557.