The college group behind a hotel ranked number one of Tripadvisor in one Kent seaside town, has scooped a top award.

The EKC Group - which operates colleges in Broadstairs, Canterbury, Dover, Folkestone and Sheppey - won a top prize at the Association of Colleges' Beacon Awards, dubbed the Oscars of UK colleges.

It won the Excellence in Real World Learning Award for its hotel, The Yarrow.

The four-star venue, next to its Broadstairs campus, is a fully operational hotel which provides students studying for hospitality qualifications to get real, hands-on, paid experience.

It has proved a hit with the public - with a five-star rating on Tripadvisor, ranking it one of the top hotels in the county.

EKC Group chief executive, Graham Razey, said: "The Yarrow, has proven itself as an absolute sector leader, delivering a genuinely inspirational experience for the many students who’ve had the opportunity to work there. As a hotel it is in the top 100 ranked in England by travellers on TripAdvisor and is a breeding ground for the future stars of the hospitality industry.

"However, it goes beyond that, also offering up a community facility that’s fully embedded itself into its locality, providing jobs within Thanet and bringing tourists into the area."

Mark White, interim chair of the Association of Colleges' Charitable Trust said: “The work of EKC Group shows how important colleges are in providing students with the necessary skills for the real world.”

The college was also shortlisted in the Education for Sustainable Development category.