A KNUTSFORD window cleaner, whose round includes the Urbis in Manchester, has been named the best in the region.

Paul Johnson runs Manchester Window Cleaners and has been busy celebrating after picking up Acquisition International’s Business Excellence Award for the best window cleaners in Greater Manchester.

Paul, 50, of Manchester Road, told the Guardian that his father Peter ran a window cleaning business since 1974 and after he decided to take early retirement from BT in 2010, he decided to take on the firm.

“Dad was coming up to retirement age so I decided to get out there and take it over,” he said.

“He only did one day a week so I had to build it up from scratch. I wanted to come over professional and wanted to work really hard to make it a success.”

Paul added the award had been a surprise.

“It came out of the blue,” he said. “We try and do a more professional job and speak to the clients, not just clean the windows.

“We’ve got some very good clients and those are the household names really and we are very proud that they put our name forward.

“With the Urbis as it is a lot of glass and free of frames it doesn’t take as long as you might think.

"With window cleaning there is a lot of manoeuvring from one frame to the next but one big panel is easier, so the National Football Museum doesn’t take more than a day.”

“I have been in Knutsford for years, and we do some of the big properties in Knutsford on Legh Road, and my friends have been really chuffed for me.”

Paul’s team is made up of seven employees, with two of those working part time.