Okehampton Hamlets Parish Council is celebrating having received a laptop and a year's free wireless broadband access.

The council was one of 40 groups in the South West to have received the award from the BT Community Connections award scheme.

The scheme is run by BT to give community and charitable organisations the opportunity to access the online world of communication and networking.

Okehampton Hamlets Parish Council impressed judges with its ideas on how access to the internet would benefit both their group and the local community.

The council plans to use the internet to develop its own website to enable people in the community easy access to information about their activities and planned initiatives, together with a two-way communication channel via a new council email address.

Chairman of Okehampton Hamlets Parish Council Derek Webber said: 'We are absolutely delighted with our BT Community Connections award.

'Now we will be able to keep the community informed of our activities in a far quicker and effective way.'

BT's community investment programme manager Beth Courtier said: 'This award scheme means that thousands of communities are able to take advantage of the range of benefits the internet has to offer.

'By providing these capacity-building awards, BT is encouraging sustainability and enabling groups to further their growth.'