Dorset's Best Village competition won the praise of Dorset Council amid a shift towards villages that encourage wildlife and natural habitats.

It is the first year of the competition since district councils were disbanded amid the recent local government shake-up.

The competition is hosted by Magna Housing, which has been the main sponsor over the past decade.

Speaking at the awards ceremony at Cerne Abbas Village Hall on Tuesday night, cllr Pauline Batstone, chairman of Dorset Council reiterated the council's support. "On behalf of Dorset Council I would like to express our thanks to you all for organising such a splendid event," she said.

"I'm really pleased to see that the award has continued and is thriving. We want to encourage people to love and enjoy our beautiful county."

The overall winners were Pimperne - Best Large Village, and Studland - Best Small Village.

In recent years the competition has grown from being just an award for 'Best Kept Village' with the addition of new categories such as 'People's Project', the 'Environmental Award', 'Best Village Shop' and a brand new 'Community Heritage' award.

Winner of the Community Heritage Award was the new West Bay Discovery Centre. John West of Bridport Area Development Trust said: "Our mission is to be a treasure trove of activities, information and stories.

"One visitor recently commented; "we came in as a group of people aged between eight and 74 and there was something to entertain everybody" - that's what we try to achieve - we want more people to spend time in the local area having visited the centre."

Commending the way many villages are focussing efforts on wildlife conservation, Rita Burden, volunteer coordinator of the competition, said: "We are very aware that villages are becoming more environmentally friendly, leaving areas for grass and wild flowers to grow, which we like to see.

"We don't look for a chocolate box village with hanging baskets and perfectly manicured lawns.

"Many villages have living churchyards," added Mrs Burden, who has been involved with the competition for over 30 years. "We have seen an abundance of ox-eye daisies this year and Valerian has been very common - it's been a lovely picture."

The competition saw a total of 39 entries which is slightly fewer than last year - however the majority of entrants (19) were west Dorset villages. North Dorset brought seven entries to the table, with seven from Purbeck and four from the east of the county.

"Somehow we have to encourage these others to keep up with west Dorset," added Rita Burden.

"We have not had district councils this year but we have two constant judges who have worked with us over many years - our thanks go to Margaret and Beryl who have given up many hours."

Judge and volunteer Peter Slocombe drove a total of 900 miles during the judging process to examine villages with a fine tooth comb.

"I take a photograph of every one and all of them have highly commendable features," he said.

Selina White, chief executive at Magna Housing said: "I am delighted that we have had the opportunity to sponsor and host the event again this year. The competition is a great way for communities to showcase their work and demonstrate the benefits to local people."

The winners are:

Best Large Village: Pimperne

Best Small Village: Studland

Best Hamlet: Beer Hackett

Best Previous Winner - Large Village: Portesham

Best Previous Winner - Small Village: Briantspuddle

Best Village Shop: joint winners - Thorncombe Stores and Chapel Lane Stores, Abbotsbury.

Peoples Project - Charlton Marshall Village Hall

Environment Award - Shipton Gorge Hedgehog Group

Community Heritage Award - West Bay Discovery Centre

First Time Entrant Award - Stourpaine