The creative talents behind the best websites in Brighton and Hove were honoured at a glittering awards ceremony last night.

Hundreds of internet fans gathered at The Sallis Benney Theatre in Grand Parade, Brighton, for the Brighton and Hove Web Awards.

There were 13 categories in total, including best community site, best business site, best personal site and blog, best music site, best hotel site and best arts site.

There were more than 175 entries for the awards.

Competition organisers Sussex Community Internet Project (SCIP) recruited a team of judges, including web designers and web users, to draw up a shortlist. The eventual winners were decided in an online vote, with the exception of the Best in Show Award category, which was decided by text vote at the ceremony.

This went to Wellies With Wings who also won the Best Personal Site and Blog award.

Other winners included the social networking phenomenon Facebook in the Best Website in the World category, sponsored by The Argus, and carfreewalks.org, which won the Best Community Site.

SCIP director Mark Walker said: "Each year the standard keeps getting higher. Sites deemed average this year are now very good and the good ones are now excellent.

People are putting more thought into their sites and are using them as a place where their customers can actually do things.

"There's a lot more video. A great example of this was the Love's restaurant site where you can watch the episode of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares in which it featured."

The awards are one of the highlights of the annual Brighton and Hove Digital Festival, organised by SCIP and digital media agency Wired Sussex.

SCIP started the festival in 1998 as the internet began to take off.

Now almost 1,500 companies in Brighton are classed as creative.

AND THE WINNERS ARE:

  • Best Website in the World (sponsor - The Argus) Facebook - http://www.facebook.com
  • Best Business Site (sponsor - Martin Searle Solicitors) Love's Fish Restaurant - http://www.lovesrestaurant.co.uk
  • Best Charity Site (sponsor - neo: creative) Amaze - http://www.amazebrighton.org.uk
  • Best Local Online Community (sponsor - Midnight Communications) Car Free Walks - http://www.carfreewalks.org
  • Best Hotel Site SeaSpray - http://www.seaspraybrighton.co.uk
  • Best Local Arts Site (sponsor - 021creative) Two Kats and a Cow - http://www.twokatsandacow.com
  • Best Local Music Site (sponsor - G2 Support) Brighton DJ - http://www.brightondj.co.uk
  • Best Personal Site and Blog (sponsor - Spannerworks) Wellies With Wings - http://wellieswithwings.blogspot.com
  • Best Site for a Night Out (sponsor - Seal Events and Lime Food Design) Brighton Dome - http://www.brightondome.org
  • Searchability Award (sponsor - Leapfrogg) Visit Brighton - http://www.visitbrighton.com
  • Accessibility Award (sponsor - HumanITy) Amaze - http://www.amazebrighton.org.uk Brighton Farm: The Site We Wish We'd Built Urban Dirty - http://urbandirty.com