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Nominations and Award Categories

Nominations and Award Categories

Please make sure you evidence these three core criteria in your nomination to give your application the best chance of impressing the judges:

  • Supporting others – We are looking for members of staff/teams who put the pupils, parents and the school community at the heart of everything they do, an individual or team who consistently put others first and leads by example
  • Having an impact – How has your nomination had a real impact and made a lasting difference to the lives of children and young people and their families in Buckinghamshire?
  • Being innovative – We are looking for members of staff and teams who think big and aim high. Nominations should demonstrate innovative thinking and how the nominee(s) has used creative solutions to issues and challenges

New Teacher of the Year Award

Sponsored by Marlow Film Studios

New teachers are the lifeblood of the teaching profession. Bringing bags of new ideas, fresh perspectives and enthusiasm to their school, new teachers can inspire their pupils and have a significant impact on their academic, social and emotional development. Fantastic new teachers have a positive, ‘can-do’ attitude and an openness to learn from those more experienced colleagues around them.

  • The New Teachers of the Year award is open to all Early Career Buckinghamshire teachers – either within their first or second ECT year (or part-time equivalent).
  • Award Criteria - we are looking for a new teacher who:
    • Demonstrates creativity and a commitment to bringing new ideas to their classroom
    • Has a positive can-do attitude and bags of enthusiasm that makes a big impact on the class and school
    • Inspires their pupils to dream big and aim high
    • Enthusiastically takes on responsibility

Nominations have now closed

Teacher of the Year Award

Sponsored by Wycombe Wanderers

The Teacher of the Year award will be presented to an individual who goes above and beyond every single day, engaging all pupils in learning, celebrating uniqueness and diversity, motivating their class to succeed and building their pupils’ trust and confidence. We all remember the one teacher who made a real difference in our lives; they have a passion for teaching, a passion for their subjects and are able to inspire a passion in their pupils.  On top of this, we are looking for individuals who demonstrate genuine warmth, engagement and empathy with all their pupils, make learning fun and accessible and facilitate personal growth and strong self-esteem. 

The Teacher of the Year Award is open to all teachers who hold QTS and work within a Buckinghamshire School. Teachers nominated in this category should have been working as a teacher for at least 2 years.

Award Criteria - we are looking for a teacher who:

  • Consistently demonstrates exceptional teaching and learning knowledge, skills and characteristics
  • Inspires a love of learning and a belief in all their pupils that the sky is the limit
  • Celebrates uniqueness and diversity in their classroom and inspires their pupils to do the same
  • Has an impact beyond the classroom, both on the whole school and the wider school community

Make an entry

Teaching Assistant of the Year Award

Sponsored by Buckinghamshire Council

Teaching Assistants are a core element in the success of every school. It is a role that provides huge support to teachers, but more importantly to the pupils, and in particular some of a school’s most vulnerable pupils.  The Teaching Assistant of the Year will be awarded to an individual who understands and supports the needs of the pupils in their class, breaks down barriers to learning and positively supports the lives of the pupils and their families.  Teaching Assistants wear so many hats every day and manage these tasks with ease; being a flexible, multi-tasking, resilient, positive, strong communicator with a good ear and a kind heart is key to the job.

The Teaching Assistant of the Year Award is open to all TAs, LSAs and Learning Mentors working within a Buckinghamshire School.

Award Criteria - we are looking for a Teaching Assistant who:

  • Inspires a love of learning and a belief in all their pupils that the sky is the limit
  • Celebrates uniqueness and diversity in their classroom and inspires their pupils to do the same
  • Breaks down barriers to learning in exciting and innovative ways
  • Supports pupils to overcome their own challenges in an inspirational way

Make an entry

Senior Leadership Team of the Year Award – Primary

Sponsored by Buckinghamshire Council

The Senior Leadership Team set the strategic direction for the school, they create the culture that enables staff to teach, pupils to learn and the whole community to feel safe, valued and enabled to reach great heights.  To be successful in one of these two age phases we are looking for a Senior Leadership Team that can demonstrate its clarity of vision, its impact on the school culture and how their high expectations have positively impacted on the whole school community.  Leadership is more than the School Development Plan; we are also looking for an inspirational team who have created a culture of success, one which puts pupils at the heart of everything they do and where pupils feel safe, happy and thrive.  Staff will recognise their excellent leadership and enjoy working with them. Parents trust them and feel engaged and positive about the school.

The Senior Leadership Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire. All-through schools can be nominated in either the primary or secondary category, whichever age phase feels most suitable for the team.

Award Criteria - we are looking for a Senior Leadership Team who:

  • Have an ambitious vision and plan for school, which is shared with the whole school community
  • Have created a culture of success, but also one which puts pupils at the heart of everything that they do
  • Have a fantastic open dialogue with all staff and a commitment to creating a strong, professional and positive team
  • Value all staff and support their well-being and mental health

Make an entry

Senior Leadership Team of the Year Award – Secondary

Sponsored by Buckinghamshire Council

The Senior Leadership Team set the strategic direction for the school, they create the culture that enables staff to teach, pupils to learn and the whole community to feel safe, valued and enabled to reach great heights.  To be successful in one of these two age phases we are looking for a Senior Leadership Team that can demonstrate its clarity of vision, its impact on the school culture and how their high expectations have positively impacted on the whole school community.  Leadership is more than the School Development Plan; we are also looking for an inspirational team who have created a culture of success, one which puts pupils at the heart of everything they do and where pupils feel safe, happy and thrive.  Staff will recognise their excellent leadership and enjoy working with them. Parents trust them and feel engaged and positive about the school. 

The Senior Leadership Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire.  All-through schools can be nominated in either the primary or secondary category, whichever age phase feels most suitable for the team. 

Award Criteria - we are looking for a Senior Leadership Team who: 

  • Have an ambitious vision and plan for school, which is shared with the whole school community 
  • Have created a culture of success, but also one which puts pupils at the heart of everything that they do 
  • Have a fantastic open dialogue with all staff and a commitment to creating a strong, professional and positive team 
  • Value all staff and support their well-being and mental health 

Make an entry

Health and Wellbeing Award

Sponsored by LEAP

The last couple of years have been particularly tough for pupils and staff alike. The Health and Wellbeing Award celebrates schools that have successfully created a positive culture in which both physical and mental health thrive. This award will go to a school who have a whole school strategy for improving the well-being of pupils, who can demonstrate its commitment to promoting health and wellbeing as part of day-to-day school life and have evidence of their success in making health and wellbeing a priority.

The Health and Wellbeing Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire. The nominee can be either an inspirational individual or a fantastic team.  We would particularly welcome nominations from schools in areas of Buckinghamshire where there are particular barriers to a healthy lifestyle.

Award Criteria - we are looking for an individual/team who:

  • Have committed to a clear strategy that promotes and protects the physical and emotional health of all pupils and staff
  • Actively champions physical and mental well-being for all
  • Has demonstrated both creativity and commitment to the health of the school
  • Ensures systems and partnerships are in place to support the different types of physical and mental health needs within a school

Make an entry

Inclusion Award

Sponsored by Bosch

An inclusive school is one where there is unconditional acceptance of every child; everyone is recognised and appreciated for what they can do, not what they can’t.  Teachers will have high expectations of what all children and young people can achieve and be creative to allow every child to participate by removing barriers to learning.  The Inclusion Award will be presented to a school which positively and proactively raises achievement for all, eliminates discrimination, advances equality of opportunity and fosters positive relationships throughout the school and wider community.

The Inclusion Award is open to all schools in Buckinghamshire. The nominee can be either an inspirational individual with a passion for inclusion or an Inclusion Team who are making a significant impact.

Award Criteria - we are looking for an individual/team who:

  • Ensures that the school is a welcoming school where all pupils feel valued. Difference is celebrated
  • Respect and celebrate all pupils’ different learning styles, ensuring all achievements are equally valued
  • Demonstrates creativity and commitment to removing barriers to learning and ensuring all pupils make progress
  • Fosters positive relationships with all stakeholders

Make an entry

The Buckinghamshire Challenge - Raising Attainment Award

Sponsored by Supply Desk

Buckinghamshire is a county of contrasts, with a considerable gap between the achievement of our pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds compared to their peers.  We are keen to receive nominations from schools that can demonstrate how they have developed a culture of inclusion, positivity, energy and purpose. Does your school have excellent practice and a shared staff mission which is addressing this challenge?  We would like to hear from schools where pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds are thriving and attaining well.   

The Buckinghamshire Challenge – Raising Attainment Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire.  The nominee can be either an inspirational individual or a fantastic team, making a difference for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Award Criteria - we are looking for an individual practitioners or Pupil Premium/Inclusion teams who:

  • Have a school-wide understanding of how disadvantage impacts pupil learning, a shared understanding of how to address this and a culture of achievement and success for all pupils, regardless of their background
  • Have developed interesting, thoughtful approaches to assessing the academic and pastoral needs of disadvantaged pupils
  • Build resilience by raising challenges in the classroom and have high expectations of all children and young people, with a clear and collective focus on getting in right for every learning in every classroom, every day
  • Work closely with parents, carers and the whole school community to ensure that everyone feels that they belong in all aspects of school life

Make an entry

Inspiring Futures Award

Sponsored by Bucks Skills Hub in partnership with Buckinghamshire Business First

Every young person needs to leave school feeling inspired and enabled to make informed decisions about their future and capitalise on opportunities available. Good career guidance is a necessity for social mobility: those young people without significant social capital or home support to draw upon have the most to gain from high-quality career guidance. The school who will be presented with the Inspiring Futures Award will be able to demonstrate that they have a whole school approach to inspiring young people’s futures through linking curriculum learning to careers, provide inspirational encounters with employers and workplaces and address the needs of each and every young person.

The Inspiring Futures Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire, we welcome nominators from both primary and secondary age phases. The nominee can be either an inspiration individual or a fantastic team.

Award Criteria - we are looking for an individual practitioner or team who:

  • Can demonstrate a whole school approach to inspiring futures
  • Enable all pupils to make informed decisions regarding the choices are open to them
  • Advance social mobility through opening pupils’ eyes to futures they might not even have considered and demonstrate the path to success in the field
  • Provide inspirational encounters and experiences

Make an entry

Unsung Heroes Award

Sponsored by The Entertainer

This award celebrates all those Unsung Heroes working in Buckinghamshire schools – of which we know that there are thousands.  This award is open to anyone on a school staff team, other than the Senior Leaders, Teachers and TAs.  Do you know a member of the catering team who positively enhances the lives of the children at the school?  An Office Manager who has bought fresh thinking to the school and revolutionised the school’s administration or a Parent Support Officer who works relentlessly to build relationships and support parents and carers?  If so, we would love to hear from you.

The Unsung Heroes Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire. The nominee can be either an inspirational individual or a fantastic team, staff members or governors.

Award Criteria – we are looking for an individual/team who:

  • Has had a positive impact on the life of the school and its community
  • Does things differently and always makes a difference
  • Has a ‘can do’ attitude - working over and above that expected of them, whatever their role
  • Has made a lasting impact on the lives of children and young people and their families in Buckinghamshire

Make an entry

Pupil Voice Award

Sponsored by Buckinghamshire Council

The Pupil Voice award will be presented to the Student Council or similar student voice group that has made the biggest positive difference to their school community.  Organised Pupil Voice groups amplify the voices of all children and young people within their school communities, and we would like to see how your groups accomplish this in an exciting, innovative and inclusive manner.  Nominations should demonstrate impact, creativity, and how youth-led your approach is. All nominations must also reflect the principles by the terms of the Youth Participation Strategy.

The Pupil Voice Award is open to all schools within Buckinghamshire. The nominees should be a Student Council (or similar student/pupil voice group) along with their Staff facilitator.

Award Criteria - we are looking for a team who:

  • Has had a big positive impact on the life of the school and its community
  • Can evidence a commitment to inclusivity and valuing all voices
  • Demonstrates creativity and innovation in listening to the school community
  • Have successfully implemented change as a result of pupil voice initiatives

Make an entry

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