Awards - Giving education’s everyday stars a chance to shine

We want to hear from you as the TES Schools Awards return

24th January 2014, 12:00am

Nominations are now open for the prestigious TES Schools Awards, which celebrate the outstanding quality, innovation and dedication of teachers and support staff across the UK.

TES wants to hear about the schools, teams and individual teachers whose hard work has made a real difference to the lives of their students and communities.

There are 17 categories in total, including such accolades as Inspirational Teacher of the Year, Lifetime Achievement and Headteacher of the Year.

There are also awards in areas such as science, humanities, maths, English, sports and healthy eating, and the use of education technology.

Previous winners have spoken out about the glory that goes with winning a TES Schools Award. George Eliot Primary School in St John’s Wood, north- west London, was named both primary of the year and overall outstanding school of the year in 2013 after undergoing a remarkable transformation under the headship of Beatrix Simpson.

Ms Simpson said that winning the awards had provided extremely welcome recognition for the hard work of everyone at the school and in the wider community. “After the journey we had as a school, winning the TES Schools Awards was like a golden stamp for us,” she added.

“We put a table out at the front of the school so parents could see and touch the awards. They were happy and proud of the school’s achievements and felt they had played a part in it.

“We also got lots of publicity locally and it was great to see people taking such an interest in what we had done.”

Secondary school of the year in 2013 was Westminster Academy in London. Anita Bjelica, associate principal, said: “Winning was the best way to thank all our supporters over the years: our students, parents and staff, as well as our social, educational, business and community links.

“The impact of winning this award helped to highlight how Westminster Academy changes lives so significantly to an incredibly wide audience locally, nationally and internationally. Thank you, TES.”

Ann Mroz, editor of TES, said: “These awards are a great opportunity to showcase some of the country’s most amazing schools.

“We know there is fantastic work being done by teachers up and down the country. This is our chance to help you share those successes and give you some of the recognition that you richly deserve.”

The TES Schools Awards are open to all state and independent primary and secondary schools in the UK.

Nominations open today and the deadline for entries is 30 March 2014. The winners will be announced at a ceremony on 4 July at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge hotel in London.

For more information on the awards and how to enter, visit www.tesawards.co.uk . All entries must be via the website.