COUNTY Durham's consumer watchdogs have been given the thumbs-up by the people who use the service.

A survey carried out by Durham County Council's consumer services department, among 500 consumers, found that most are satisfied with its work.

More than 95 per cent said they would recommend the service to someone else - an almost identical result to a similar survey four years ago.

The majority of users found the service's standards necessary, reasonable and adequate, and were satisfied with the help they were given.

All the work carried out by the department was given a high priority rated.

Users said safety issues were important, such as protection from unsafe goods, stopping children buying cigarettes and solvents and protecting the food chain by controlling the spread of disease from farm livestock.

Many respondents also said they would prefer more frequent updates on the progress of complaints.

Phillip Holman, head of consumer services, said: "The results of this latest survey are very encouraging, but we are not complacent.

"A number of ways in which we can improve our service have been identified and will be acted on."

Cabinet member Don Ross said: "It's important for service providers to keep in touch with the people they serve.

"This has been a good exercise that will help us to meet the needs of our users better, and to plan future service provision in a more informed way."