Two Pembrokeshire based businesses have been announced as national winners in the hotly anticipated Countryside Alliance awards, known to many as the ‘Rural Oscars’.

From over 45,000 public nominations and votes – the awards' most successful year to date – Bayview Stores in Solva won The Daily Telegraph Award for best Village Shop/ Post Office, after impressing judges and seeing off six other businesses from across the country in the same category.

Dyfed Shire Horse Farm, received a Highly Commended award in the Rural Enterprise category.

Bayview's award celebrates the important role village shops play in rural communities. It commends those who go above and beyond the call of duty and are the hub of the community.

The awards are the Countryside Alliance’s annual celebration of British food and farming, enterprise and heritage through small hard-working businesses.

Bayview Stores received the award at a busy ceremony in the House of Lords, attended by government ministers, peers and MPs, including local MP, Stephen Crabb. The competition saw businesses from across the country, come together in friendly competition in their respective categories.

Earlier this year, Bayview Stores won the award for Welsh Village Shop Champion, after a public vote. After a further round of judging, the team can now add the national gong to their growing collection of titles.

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Now in their 16th year, the Countryside Alliance awards have become the definitive rural business award to win and are driven by public nomination and votes, offering customers the chance to rally around their favourite businesses, bringing communities together.

The categories for the Awards include: best butcher, best pub, best village shop, local food champions, and rural enterprise champions.

Speaking from the awards at the House of Lords, an emotional Gwyn Price, the store’s owner, said: “ This award means absolutely everything. It’s been 20 years in the making. Our staff are amazing and we thank the local community.

"I get up in the morning and consider myself the luckiest man in the world. It’s been a lot of hard work, especially through covid. We were working 14 hours shifts, every day and our community stuck by us. It truly does mean the world”.

Another Pembrokeshire based business, the Dyfed Shire Horse Farm, received a Highly Commended award in the Rural Enterprise category. This award celebrates the imagination and ingenuity of individuals in the countryside supporting the rural economy. It commends those who have made a real contribution to the community through jobs and services and helped to enhance the local area.

Stephen Crabb MP said: “I was delighted to attend the Countryside Alliance Awards and help celebrate the success of two popular Pembrokeshire businesses from my constituency.

"It's vitally important that rural businesses are given the recognition they deserve, and I am thrilled that Gwyn Price and his family from Bayview Stores, and Mark Coles and the whole team at Dyfed Shire Horse Farm, were able to fly the flag for Pembrokeshire in these national awards.

"They are two fantastic examples from our rural business community, and I am so pleased their hard work and dedication impressed the judges to secure this national status."