This comes after production workers at the plant voted unanimously in favour of union recognition in a ballot conducted by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) earlier in the year.

The recognition agreement, signed by regional officer Ted Scott, covers all employees in press, plate making, publishing and engineering at the site.

It also presents the union and staff with definitive rights to collectively bargain on terms and conditions of employment and to be consulted on a whole range of other issues.

Unite national officer for newspapers, Steve Sibbald, said: "The organising campaign at the company is unique in that we organised and established an Information and Consultation forum first, demonstrated to the employees how effective we were, and then were able to recruit the required number of members and then gain formal recognition."

He added: "We look forward to a positive relationship with the company. This is another recognition deal in the newspaper industry, which is gradually becoming unionised again."

Newsquest operates 11 newspaper print sites and produces nearly 300 weekly newspapers and 17 dailies, including the Bolton News, the Oxford Mail and the Southern Daily Echo.