Tour operator JMC's Bradford call centre is pioneering a new trend in the UK holiday industry.

The firm has become the first British holiday company to offer a round-the-clock telephone service to customers, with its Sunbridge Road centre fielding calls 24 hours a day.

The move has been brought in to meet the needs of clients who, JMC has found, increasingly prefer to discuss bookings outside normal hours.

At its Bradford base, housing 400 staff, this has meant a change in working patterns.

But Head of Programme Delivery, Bob Boyce, says the 24-hour switch has gone smoothly, and is already proving successful.

He said: "The way our market is going, and the way markets in general are going, is that people want to be able to deal with the companies they are buying products from at all times of the day."

Around 15 employees now work later, evening shifts, with that number reduced to three or four to cover the late night and early hours period.

Staffing levels have stayed the same under the new system, with anyone unable to work shifts transferred to similar, non-shift positions in the firm.

But JMC expects to increase numbers as more customers become aware of the new service.

Mr Boyce said flexibility was the key to the new scheme. "Many people need to discuss alterations with their families or friends before they can con-firm them, and this way means they can do that at the same time as they call in," he said.

"That also means it's actually quicker for us to get things sorted out, so everybody's better off."

JMC predicts further growth in the city this summer, with staff levels set to rise to around 450.