STAFF at a Lancaster visitor attraction were flushed with pride this week after scooping a top toilet award.

The team behind the day-to-day running of the Maritime Museum, whose tasks include keeping the WCs in tip-top condition, have won the 'loo attendants of the year' award.

And to cap that, their lavvies secured the 'Loo of the Year' prize along with a five-star rating.

The awards, now in their 17th year, encourage the highest standards in all types of 'away from home' or public toilets.

The WCs at the Maritime have almost become a visitor attraction in their own right - with the walls of one taking people back in time to Morecambe's heyday with a depiction of a 1950s beach scene.

The other toilet - for men, women and baby changing - features an underwater scene of tropical fish.

Wendy Moore, assistant designer at the city museums, says: "We are really pleased at the news."

The award follows a mystery visit by a judge who arrived and used the little boys' room unannounced.

Wendy says: "He didn't give us any time to tidy up - but I heard he came out smiling."

The awards are co-sponsored by specialists Cannon Hygiene, whose managing director Oliver Weisflog says: "It's a real pleasure to reward success, and particularly so when the winners work just minutes from our headquarters in Morecambe.

"The Loo Attendant of the Year Award recognises people who are often neglected but whose work really matters."

The loo awards scheme this year attracted a record-breaking 800 entries from across the UK as varied as offices, schools, pubs, shops and public toilets.