A WILTSHIRE-based jigsaw puzzle company has been awarded a prestigious business award.

Wentworth Wooden Puzzles, which creates handcrafted jigsaw puzzles in Malmesbury, has been awarded The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade.

The company, which makes more than 150,000 jigsaw puzzles a year, has received the prized award for substantial year-on-year growth in overseas sales over six years.

A Wentworth spokesman said: “The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are the most prestigious business awards in the country and winners are personally approved by Her Majesty The Queen. It means that Wentworth will now be able to use the esteemed award emblem for the next five years.”

She added: “Jigsaw puzzles are our passion and we are committed to producing high-quality puzzles that can be completed time and time again by puzzlers of all ages.

“Our puzzles are also stocked by museums, galleries and gift shops around the world and including, here, The National Gallery and The National Trust.

“We’re big believers that the quality of a jigsaw puzzle is only as good as the materials it is produced from. Many jigsaw puzzle manufacturers prioritise profit over durability, opting to use cheaper paperboard, but this often leads to a poor quality puzzle that struggles to withstand the tests of time and eventually become creased or damaged.

“In keeping with puzzling traditions, at Wentworth all of our jigsaw puzzles are produced from sustainably-sourced wood for guaranteed long-lasting quality as the years roll by, so you can relive your favourite puzzles whenever you like.”

Sarah Watson, managing director at Wentworth Wooden Puzzles, said: “We’re thrilled and honoured to receive one of The Queens Award for Enterprise, especially in the Platinum Jubilee year and as the last couple of years have been extremely hard for businesses.

“This is testament to the hard work and resilience of all of our colleagues who have risen to the many challenges, working relentlessly to create our fantastic puzzles and delight our ever growing number of customers.

“Since we were founded in 1991 we have been passionate about creating our unique, high quality, wooden jigsaw puzzles from our Wiltshire factory.

“We’re now reaching puzzle enthusiasts, of all ages, around the world. We’re so pleased that our hard work in achieving this over the past six years has been recognised and we’re looking forward to building on this into the future.”