CAROLINE Lucas has been named as the top MP for representing minority communities of the last five years.

The Brighton Pavilion Green MP came top of the pile in the Patchwork Foundation awards held at Westminster this week.

A shortlist of 60 was selected out of the 650 MPs before the judging panel picked the 54-year-old as the overall winner.

The Patchwork Foundation is a not for profit organisation that helps to engage deprived and minority communities within British society through exposure and engagement into the political environment.

MPs were judged by five key criteria: working with deprived communities (including white working class communities), working with faith communities, ethnic communities, sexual orientation communities and others traditionally excluded by the political process.

Ms Lucas MP said: "It does mean a lot to win an award such as this, especially as it is voted for initially by constituents.

"None of it would be possible without my incredible team so I want to say a big thank you to them.

"I hope the award reflects the wide range of work I have carried out across my years as an MP with different groups across the city."

Ms Lucas became the first Green MP to enter Parliament when she was elected in 2010.

Since then she has made a name for herself by supporting various groups and taking part in frequent protests.

In 2013 she hit the headlines after wearing a protest t-shirt with the slogan No More Page 3 during a debate on sexism at Westminster. She was told to stick to the Parliament dress code if she wanted to continue the debate.

Later the same year she was arrest at Balcombe for her part in the anti fracking protest. She was later found not guilty of any offence.

Her party leader, Natalie Bennett, described her award as "richly deserved".

She said: "Everyone in the Green Party is constantly inspired by Caroline’s outstanding work in the House of Commons to challenge the status quo and deliver real change for the common good.

"This prestigious award recognises what all Greens know - that Caroline has done a huge amount of work for deprived, minority and under represented communities. Caroline has been a tireless defender of the most vulnerable and consistently provided real opposition to the government’s damaging and ideologically-driven austerity agenda."

It is the third year in a row Ms Lucas MP has been handed an award by the Patchwork Foundation. In 2013 she was named Newcomer of the Year and last year she was named MP of the Year.