THE Royal Gunpowder Mills achieved top place in the Best Family Event category at the first Essex Marvellous Museum Awards.

The Waltham Abbey venue achieved the feat after winning a public vote organised by the Museums in Essex Committee and open to 80 institutions across the county.

For its success, the Mills received a certificate and £200.

Museum manager Lynne Leonard said: “It’s fantastic that the public has voted for us to win this award. It is great to get such a positive response from our visitors and I would like to thank everyone, staff, volunteers and suppliers, for all their hard work throughout the year in making this possible.”

The next event at the Mills, in Beaulieu Drive, Waltham Abbey, is Victorian Christmas, which will take place on Sunday, December 13. For more information visit royalgunpowdermills.com.