SOME of Croydon's finest small businesses battled it out with nationwide brands in the finals of the Croydon Business Awards.

South London Business organised the bash at Croydon's Fairfield Halls on Wednesday night.

Finalists in the fiercely contested Best Small Business category were Arnold and Baldwin Chartered Surveyors, BLC Property Services, Croft Structural Engineers, Power O'Shea, The Valet Male Grooming and White Label Consultants.

Joe Arnold, from Arnold and Baldwin, said: "We are proud advocates of Croydon, and we are excited about the future potential the borough has to offer to new and established businesses."

BLC Property Services is a specialist provider of energy performance certificates, property inventories and floor plans.

BLC's Byron Cole said involvement in the finals would generate positive PR for its sector and give the team a massive reward for their efforts.

And Chris Tomlin, director of Croft Structural Engineers, said shortlisting "stands as testament to the hard work and commitment of all the team at Croft Structural Engineers".

The finalists for Best Business for Sustainability were Coulsdon Audi, Futures Supplies, Jury's Inn, OCS Group, Zircon Management and Kinghams of Croydon.

Coulsdon Audi's showroom and workshop has been built with groundbreaking clean energy technologies, making it the most environmentally-friendly dealership in the UK.

Brand director Philip Smith said: "Coulsdon Audi is the UK's first motor dealership to achieve a BREEAM rating of 'excellent' for the efficient way it was built and the environmentally friendly way it is run.

"Customers were impressed at the commitment the company had to lowering its carbon footprint."

Meanwhile Sustainability category competitor Zircon stands out as the first remote-working business psychology company to be developed.

Jacky Griffiths, of HSBC, supported their entry to the awards, by saying: "Zircon's sustainability and green strategy goes hand-in-hand with our own policies."

Another Sustainability finalist, property support company OCS, is a Croydon-based global family business with a turnover of more than £700 million, which has become the pioneer of an integrated delivery solution which uses new technology to reduce environmental impact.

Sustainability director Adrian Shukor said: "OCS has made significant steps forward over the past 12 months towards the goal of establishing sustainable development."

Competing for the award for Best Customer Service were Blackfords LLP, Croydon Visitor Centre, Kinghams of Croydon, Power O'Shea, Streets Ahead and Rightpath Claims, a claims firm specialising in the travel insurance market.

Rightpath's Paul Staples said: "We often have to broach bad news with customers under difficult circumstances, yet have still delivered near perfect customer satisfaction rates."

Major sponsors of the awards include Barclays Business, Wing Yip, Rowland Brothers, Fairfield Halls, Croydon Park Hotel, zebra IT, Lloyds TSB Commercial, Whitgift School, Zurich Insurance, Croydon Park Hotel, Owadally and King, ITC Concepts and Croydon's District Centre Management, which is sponsoring a special award for the best 'customer-nominated' business from the districts.