A FIRE services charity is a flaming great place to work - in fact, it's one of the best in the country.

Employees at the Basingstoke-headquartered Fire Services National Benevolent Fund (FSNBF) have this week been celebrating their workplace being voted into 14th place in the annual Sunday Times Best 100 Small Companies to Work For.

The placing followed last year's success when the charity came 20th in the Sunday Times Top 50 Small Businesses to Work For.

Last April, the FSNBF moved its national headquarters from Littlehampton to Copenhagen Court, in Basingstoke town centre, and has since been on a winning streak, including chief executive Roy Lawrenson winning the coveted UK Charity Principal of the Year just after the move.

This week he said: "Our move to Basingstoke has enabled our organisation to step up to the next level due to its prime location and excellent facilities.

"We are very pleased with our progress and our new location has certainly helped us continue our development."

He added: "The success of the charity over the past three years has been fantastic, and this is in no small part to the fabulous employees and volunteers who make up the core workforce of the organisation.

"We work from the top down to ensure we are all pulling in the same direction. We will continue to aim for an even better workplace and, in turn, achieve even more business success for our beneficiaries."

More than eight out of 10 staff said they were supported when they needed to learn new skills, 82 per cent said they felt secure in their jobs and 86 per cent felt they were making a valuable contribution.

For 63 per cent, working for the charity is their dream job.

HR director Gordon Ross said: "We take our responsibilities as an employer of highly-talented people very seriously, and we leave no stone unturned in our mission to create the most happy and productive workplace."

The charity was set up in 1943 to support the firefighters of the Second World War and is now dedicated to supporting the lives of serving and retired fire service personnel and their families.