THE TEAROOM at Hadlow College has won the title of Best Rural Enterprise in the South East of England in a competition held by the Countryside Alliance.

The Broadview tea room, which is part of the commercial area at the college which includes a garden shop, 10 acres of gardens and a county produce shop, will now enter the national final of the contest in a bid to beat the 12 other regional winners.

Representatives from the college will go to an event at the House of Lords in March where the national winner will be announced.

Hadlow College spokeswoman Wendy Peckham said the tea room was chosen for its good service, the fact it was always clean and tidy and for the high standard of its food, all of which is cooked and made individually on the premises.

She said as much of the food as possible is sourced locally.

Countryside Alliance South East regional director Michelle Nudds pointed out that five years ago Hadlow College was on the brink of insolvency and was facing either closure or amalgamation with another college.

She said: "However, revitalised management and a loyal and motivated lecturing team has turned around Hadlow's fortunes so that it is now one of the UK's leading land-based colleges.

"This came across in the visit to the tearooms. The tearooms provide excellent service to the college and the local community."