AN employee at Virgin Mobile in Trowbridge is jetting off to Australia after bringing a goat into his boss's office.

The company set up the Road Scholarship, a new incentive programme designed to reward staff who have made an outstanding contribution to the company. The prize is a family trip to one of Virgin Mobile's overseas offices for two weeks.

The two winners of this year's competition were announced at the company's headquarters.

Those who made the final stages were interviewed about their role in the company and revealed information about themselves that none of their colleagues knew.

Jason Tye, 30, an operations support manager from Bristol, brought a goat into chief executive Tom Alexander's office to prove he was a champion goat milker as a child. Jason's performance and dedication to his work have won him a trip to Virgin Mobile in Australia.

James Iles, 30, a senior technical trainer from Bristol, has won a Road Scholarship to the US.

Runners up were awarded a pampering weekend for two. They are Clare Hunt, David Buckingham, Lisa Guy, Phil Dymond, Denny Moodie, Kyra Ings, Nigel Denny, Sam Morris and Kate Maitland-Taylor.

Steven Day, corporate affairs director at Virgin Mobile, said: "Virgin Mobile has a great collaborative culture and we wanted a way to reward some of our most impressive members of staff in a fun way that supports our exciting global approach."