The Message Trust has been awarded second place in the prestigious Sunday Times' annual Best Companies To Work For survey, in the Not-For-Profits category.

The Christian charity works with some of the UK's hardest to reach young people locations in Manchester, Cardiff, Glasgow, Birmingham and West London. It also works internationally in Cape Town and Vancouver.

It came just behind South Liverpool Homes, but beat other charites, college, UNICEF UK and even the National Trust in the annual awards list.

The award was presented by TV personality Ben Shepherd at a gala dinner at Battersea Evolution in London.

CEO and founder Andy Hawthorne, who collected the award with his wife Michele, said: 'I'm so proud of The Message being honoured in this way. I've always liked to think of us as being a bunch of mates on a mission, and coming second shows that our staff feel the same way.'

Hawthorne also collected a special award for Best Leader, having scored a top ranking for his inspirational leadership.

Now in its 25^th year, The Message Trust shares the Christian faith in schools, prisons and tough communities across the UK.

'There's never been a more exciting time for us as an organisation – we're expanding faster than ever before,' Hawthorne said. 'It's incredible to think that we've literally gone from working out of a spare bedroom to the global movement we are today, reaching hundreds of thousands of people a year.'

The organisation also scored first place for its strong values, seen as key to its operations.

The Message saw a third top score for whether staff see their jobs as good for personal growth. Employee Cyril Wilding visited the prison where he was once an inmate to share his story of hope. 'I always tell people, "This is where it started for me – and this is where it can start for you," he said.