THE team at the Rownhams motorway service station's Roadchef has collected its top prize for Newcomer of the Year.

At the company's annual Heroes of the Year ceremony, those at the Costa Drive Thru picked up the gong, beating competition from 30 sites across the UK.

Roadchef holds the ceremony each year to celebrate the achievements of its team members across the business, including the retail shops, hotels, catering operations and support office.

Following a new partnership with Costa to install Drive Thrus at a number of its sites, Rownhams was one of the first to receive the new addition.

The southbound site has produced the fastest average service times for cars passing through the lane at just more than 100 seconds.

Elaine Burt, site director at Rownhams said: "It's been brilliant to be a part of one of the first Costa Drive Thrus in Roadchef's portfolio and has made for a very exciting year.

"The team have worked really hard to make it a success and we look forward to continuing this in 2018."

Simon Turl, CEO of Roadchef, said: "The team at Rownhams fully deserve the award, after such hard work in making the Costa Drive Thru a great success. Their dedication to quality and customer service has really shone through so a big congratulation goes to all the team."