The news was greeted with "absolute delight" by Master Franchisor Ken Deary, who accepted the accolade at the bfa's annual award ceremony in Oxfordshire  along with Operations Director Tim Jones. 

Ken, himself a former bfa Franchisee of the Year, said afterwards: "We may be up here accepting the award, but it's down to the hard work of our franchisees and the team at head office and the support of our colleagues at Right at Home Inc. in America that is has been possible. 

"We are absolutely delighted that we've won. It shows how much work everyone has put in to create a great franchise system."

The award was hotly contested as it was only introduced by the bfa this year, to recognise franchises that are standing out from the crowd in their early days. It was open to all businesses that have been franchising for five years or less.

Judges were looking for a good infrastructure providing support to a growing network, solid preparation prior to the launch of the franchise, and demonstrable network growth in terms of franchisees and their revenues.