A DISTRICT council has won praise from the Government's top planning chiefs.

Teesdale District Council has been named as having one of the best local authority planning services in the country.

Last year, the council's planning service achieved the second highest score of all authorities in the country.

Now, following further development and improvement, it has gone one step further.

The service, which is available online, 24 hours a day, has earned the maximum score against 21 key criteria.

These included an assessment of how easy it is to submit, view and comment on planning applications online, monitor their progress and view the local development plan.

A recent survey of local authority websites commissioned by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister awarded the service an "excellent" rating.

However, only two years ago the council's overall performance was rated as "poor" in the Audit Commission's Comprehensive Performance Assessment tests.

The council is hoping to bring the rest of its services in line with the planning department's standard.

Councillor Ossie Hedley, lead member for local development at the council, said: "Everyone has worked very hard to get planning services electronically enabled.

"What we need to do now is raise awareness of the facility and encourage people to use it to its full potential.

"It shows tremendous commitment of staff and demonstrates the determination of the authority to provide first-rate services to its customers.

"I believe it also confirms we are on the right track to achieving excellence right across the board."