Last month, the Tenter Street company beat some of the biggest names in broadband to be named best overall service provider after taking first place in nine of the 11 categories assessed by uSwitch.com, the independent price comparison and switching service.

As uSwitch's communications expert Steve Weller put it: "Once again PlusNet is putting its larger competitors to shame - it's definitely a case of 'small but perfectly formed.' The rest of the pack needs to seriously up their game."

PlusNet was also praised for retaining its identity as a provider of low-cost, reliable services after being acquired by BT in November 2006.

The uSwitch accolade is just one of a series secured by the Sheffield company this year.

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Since January, PlusNet has been named top Internet Service Provider in the UK, following a survey by Broadband Choices, the broadband comparison service, and came second only to parent group BT in stringent technical tests by industry monitor Epitiro to find the UK's fastest broadband supplier.

The company also won the title of Best Consumer ISP in the Internet Service Providers' Association Awards, in addition to reaching the finals of the Best Business ISP Award and Best Business Broadband Awards in the same contest.

Within the last 12 months, PlusNet has also picked up the Computer Shopper Reader Award for being the Best Broadband Provider and Custom PC magazine's Best Internet Service Provider award.

In May last year, uSwitch also named PlusNet as Best Overall Internet Service Provider, with a 78 per cent customer satisfaction rating – since increased to 86 per cent customer satisfaction – and hailed the company as one of two ISPs most likely to be recommended by their customers.

Chief executive Neil Laycock says the company's success is down to everyone in its Tenter Street headquarters.

"We are euphoric in this building. To be able to differentiate ourselves from our competitors on service and to get a whole building focused on customer service from customer support department through to the network engineers is a great achievement.

"The challenge is to keep ourselves up there. We are playing in what is possibly the most competitive business space in Europe. It doesn't get any more aggressive as a business environment.

"We must keep raising the bar, raising the standards and pushing to put daylight between ourselves and the competition.

"We have made massive progress. Now it the time to get national recognition – that's our challenge."

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