Accountancy Age Awards 2010 Software Package of the Year - Access UK

Access has walked away with the Software Package of the Year accolade beating an array of companies to the post.

This is the fourth time the accountancy technology prov­ider has won an award in the last five years. It took home the mid-tier software prize in 2005, 2008 and 2009.

The battle for the award intensified this year as the award categories were narrowed down from three to one. However, Access fought off competition from IRIS, Mamut and Thomson Reuters to take the crown.

The judges said the entry addressed all the criteria with strong arguments and could see why they “keep winning”.

Another judge claimed the Access package represented excellent value for money, delivered a good range of functionality and was user friendly.

Access launched a variety of products this year including iPhone, iPad and Blackberry apps. It has also added more than 150 web services and worked closely with Microsoft, as an early partner to Windows 7.

The company managed to exceed profit before tax expectations, increasing by £2.48m to £4.28m.

One judge said: “They are def­initely made up of winning material, and the figures back it up.”

Earlier this year Access acquired SelectHR which it claims helped it break into the further education and legal sectors.