Distinctive black lamp-posts with their curved brackets are located on the main A5104 Hough Green road leading to and from Saltney.

Neil, a principal lighting design engineer who has worked for the county council for 30 years, has won eight awards previously, all in competitions.

He was presented with his latest award in the category for good design.

"It's always an honour to receive an award in a competition and to be recognised for the work you do, especially from outside the county council makes it even more special," said Neil.

"The lighting design came about after having talks with the Hough Green Residents' Association.

"They wanted something different and more modern than the usual Victoriana style of lamps which have been the trend in recent times throughout Chester.

"I was only too pleased to help and I always find it a real sense of achievement to see my ideas and designs transferred from paper and computer into reality."

Christine Robinson, the chairman of Chester Civic Trust, said: "Street lighting should make a positive contribution to a city's appearance and Neil's lamp standards are bold and attractive in design.

"This is also an excellent example of an authority conferring with local residents to produce an outcome pleasing to everyone."

County manager of highways, Steve Kent, said: "I am very pleased Neil's expertise has been recognised by this award.

"The street lighting service is necessarily concentrated on efficiently maintaining the existing lighting system and opportunities like this to make a positive contribution to the local environment are very welcome."