YORK'S "Bishy Road" is officially the best high street in the country.

The street has fended off competition from hundreds of other streets to take the title in the Great British High Street Awards, winning not only its "local centre" category but also the overall prize for the best high street in the UK.

Johnny Hayes, chairman of Bishy Road Trader’s Association, said: "We are absolutely bowled over. To win in our category of Best Local Parade of Shops was delightful but for Bishy Road to be named GB High Street of the Year is staggering! I am so proud of what the traders and the local community have achieved.

"We were up against some very strong contenders. I can’t stop smiling that Bishy Road has made it to the top! I’d like to thank everyone who supported and voted for us. Tonight we can celebrate and have a party. Tomorrow we will carry on doing what’s important; working together as a community to make our area better for everyone.”

 

As well as Bishopthorpe Road's triumph, North Yorkshire saw another win with Helmsley taking the crown for Best Market Town.

The prizes were announced at a special ceremony at Admiralty House in London this afternoon. Helmsley, Bishopthorpe Road, and the five other winners will share a prize pot of £80,000 as well as expert coaching from Google’s training taskforce for one hundred shops, bars and restaurants.

 

High Streets Minister Marcus Jones said: "The excitement this competition has generated with a huge level of interest from the public vote is proof that high streets are the life and soul of towns, villages and cities across the country.

"Bishy Road fully deserves their title of Britain’s best high street and I congratulate them on their good work. We’ll be sharing Bishy’s top tips with other high streets across the country to make sure others learn from their success."

A record number of 230 high streets entered the competition and nearly 200,000 votes were cast across the seven categories as the public got the chance to take part for first time this year, alongside a visit by an expert judge from the Future High Streets Forum.