A Romford delivery driver has won £1,000 for his role in keeping vans clean during the pandemic.

Paul Taylor, 42, won the Clinell Cleaning Heroes competition for the South East for "going the extra mile" in his role to help ensure none of his colleagues or clients contracted coronavirus.

The father-of-two put himself in charge of the cleaning rota at work, getting up at 2am every morning to get to work earlier.

He ensured the entire fleet were thoroughly cleaned ready to deliver food across the south east to a number of convenience stores and hospital shops.

His wife JoAnn Taylor nominated Paul after seeing the Clinell Cleaning Heroes competition on Twitter.

She said: “My hero works in transport.

“When the pandemic hit, and lorries had to be completely disinfected before and after loading, Paul began putting in extra hours to make sure everything was super clean for colleagues and his clients.

“During the pandemic, delivery drivers have had a bit of a thankless job but they are still so important, without people like Paul we would not be able to buy food from the shops.

“He is very hard working and we are so proud of him.”

Paul stressed the importance of cleaning the lorries “inside out”, as they were in use 24 hours a day.

He explained drivers worked longer hours to ensure stores were replenished with stock, particularly toilet paper.

“I remember the journeys into London then, the roads were eerily quiet," he said.

“It was so important we kept everything clean so that we didn’t spread the virus.

“Cleaning has been paramount to stopping the spread of the virus and we wanted our customers to see we were really doing our bit and focusing on responsible deliveries.”

Paul said he is considering spending his winnings on a new barbecue for his garden.

The competition was launched by manufacturer of Clinell Universal Wipes GAMA Healthcare.

Associate clinical director at GAMA Healthcare, Karen Wares, added: “Paul was a well-deserved winner.

“The dedication he showed to his colleagues and clients was excellent, particularly in light of the many challenges faced by delivery drivers.

“We were delighted to hear that he was so passionate about implementing infection prevention control practices to help keep everyone safe.”