HELMSLEY is celebrating after being names the best Market Town in the Great British High Street Awards.

The town beat off rivals Chipping Norton and Colne.

Winners in each of the seven categories of the Great British High Street Competition get a share of a prize pot worth £80,000 which includes expert training and tailor-made tips from Google’s training taskforce for one hundred of their shops, bars and restaurants.

The contest is run by the Department for Communities and Local Government and sponsored by Boots, Costa, Post Office, Marks and Spencer and Tesco.

This year’s competition saw a record 230 applicants and now, for the first time, the public has the chance to vote directly for their best-loved high street online.