2020 Education Business Awards winners 

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted how vital schools are to society. In the height of lockdown, schools remained open to children with key worker parents and vulnerable children. They also had to keep pupils motivated and engaged from a distance. Once schools re-opened, they had the difficult task of balancing the need for a Covid-safe environment while still providing a full educational experience for pupils, as well as ensuring remote learning is provided for those self isolating.

The Education Business Awards, sponsored by LocknCharge, have been recognising and celebrating school success stories since 2006. This year, due to social distancing restrictions, they were presented live online on 26 November by award-winning comedy impressionist and classically-trained singer Jess Robinson, who was joined live by voiceover artist and impressionist Darren Altman.

Outstanding progress

Scooping the award for Outstanding Progress in the Independent school sector, sponsored by Lock ‘N’ Charge, was Whitgift School in London. At Whitgift this year, over half of students achieved 40+ points in the International Baccalaureate, a feat typically achieved by only the top 10 per cent of students worldwide. This year’s scores were based on externally marked coursework for all students in all subjects. At the beginning of 2020, a director of partnerships and community was appointed to further enhance and take forward the School’s vision. While the school remained closed during the pandemic, it supplied vans and drivers for the Croydon Volunteer Action Food Banks and created visors as Personal Protective Equipment for frontline NHS staff.
    
Kearsley Academy in Bolton meanwhile were the winners for Outstanding Progress Award in the secondary school category, sponsored by Lock’n’Charge. Kearsley Academy’s GCSE results for 2019 stood at 65.3 per cent, a rise of 23.3 per cent since 2017. Despite being located in a disadvantaged area where the percentage of students drawing pupil premium is around double that of the national average, over the past two years the number of students who pass English and Maths has risen by well over 20 per cent, with 52 per cent of students achieving a strong pass - far higher than national average figures. This has placed the Academy in the top 20 most improved schools.
    
The primary school that took home the trophy for Outstanding Progress, sponsored by the Emotional Logic Centre, was Perry Court E-ACT Academy in Bristol.
    
In 2017, Perry Court was the worst performing school in Bristol and placed in the bottom one per cent of the country’s primary schools. A dramatic turnaround now sees Perry Court ranked in the top one per cent of schools nationally for both attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics, a particularly impressive achievement given that half of all pupils at the academy are from disadvantaged backgrounds.
 
Buildings and the environment

The Environmental Practice Award, sponsored by Office Depot, was presented to Damers First School in Dorse for their eco-work, which has had a huge reach locally and nationally. The school has worked with their local community, informing everyone how they could reduce their use of plastics. Pupils even put pressure on local businesses leading to one local butchers becoming a zero waste shop.
    
In recognition of its new £40 million, energy efficient building, Harris Academy Sutton won the School Building Award, sponsored by TG Escapes. It is the first secondary school in the country to meet the Passivhaus energy performance standard, which uses around 80 per cent less energy than equivalent buildings of traditional design.  

Technology

The ICT Facility Award, sponsored by Lock’n’ Charge, was taken home by Blessed William Howard Catholic High School in Staffordshire. With Digital Information Technology, Creative Media and Computer Science offered on the curriculum at Blessed William Howard, facilities to enhance learning are essential. The school has a ratio of roughly three computers per child and features ‘pods’ of computers in all subject sector areas as well as four dedicated ICT Suites.
    
The ICT Innovation Award, sponsored by PFU, was presented to Dartford Grammar in Kent, for its work as a Computing Hub, driving up computing standards in schools across the region. Following the impact of coronavirus, the school was quick to switch to the remote delivery of courses. Minister for School Standards Nick Gibb has recently praised its ambition and work.

Security and safety

Southfields Academy in London won the School Security Award, sponsored by Churches Fire and Security, for making use of body cameras on teachers. When the camera is switched on to film an incident, the default option means that the footage is encrypted and it cannot be edited prior to being uploaded to a secure Cloud account. Their presence has helped to de-escalate confrontations.
     
The School Safety Award, sponsored by Churches Fire & Security, was presented to St Mark’s CofE Primary School, for the support it gave families to manage the return to school after the Covid-19 lockdown. Strong relationships with parents include employing a community and wellbeing leader and an attendance officer to support pupils, including phone calls and home visits fortnightly, weekly and every three working days. Bespoke and targeted learning packs ensure home learning is purposeful, achievable and well monitored by staff. The suite of options for home learning can be deployed flexibly in the year ahead; especially if there are unplanned school closures or pupil absences.
    
Wrenbury Primary School in Cheshire scooped the Community Award for its partnership with a medical practice and nursing home. Year 4 children visited a medical practice to promote awareness about immunisation in their local community. Wrenbury Nursing Home also provided the children with personal stories of life pre-vaccination from some of the residents. The school followed their immunisation activity up by presenting what the children had learnt to parents and grandparents at their Summer term Sharing Afternoon. The children involved then went on to lead an assembly on the importance of immunisation.
    
The School Music Award was presented to Cobham Free School in Surrey for its links to Yehudi Menuhin School and a number of flourishing instrumental and choral groups, as well as its Music Award Scheme. At Key Stage 3 all students have class music lessons taught by the director of music, with a wide range of topics, covering and extending beyond the requirements of the national curriculum.
    
The School Sports Award was given to Upton Junior School in Kent, for its strength delivering PE and sport, confirmed recently by the Youth Sports Trust. During the ongoing lockdown, sports coaches Callum Noble and Jordan Maclaurin ensure no-one misses out by regularly providing structured activities via online streaming for boys and girls. These include fitness videos, sports challenges and lockdown sports clubs for the children as well as participation in the virtual Viking Games with Upton’s partner Viking Academy Trust schools, Ramsgate Arts Primary and Chilton Primary.
    
The Art & Craft Award was presented to West Hill Primary School in Devon. In September 2019, the school was awarded its third Artsmark Gold, and through its activities the school has developed strong relationships with the local community. Links with Exeter Area Arts presented the opportunity for West Hill to work with a master’s student from the University of Exeter. The focus topic of ‘holistic art education’ and how it is perceived by teachers gave rise to lengthy interview sessions and explored the importance of the Arts within the curriculum and how it supports children’s personal confidence, mental health and well-being as well as the potential to unlock creativity, talents, depths and excellence.  The school aims to continue to develop its arts provision and extend the effects and influence further through activities, experiences and CPD that benefit both pupils and teachers in tangible ways.
    
Gretton School scooped the SEN Provision Award in recognition of the first class education it provides to children on the autism spectrum, and for taking care of the physical and mental wellbeing of pupils and staff during the coronavirus pandemic. Three teachers were also recognised in last year’s Pearson National Teaching Awards.
    
Gretton’s headteacher Beth Elkins said: “It is just lovely to even be nominated for an award - the thought that people ‘out there’ have not only heard of Gretton, but have recognised all that we do is wonderful. To win the award was astonishing! I was in the virtual awards ceremony, and - when the SEN Provision of the Year category came up - I found I was holding my breath! We were up against some very worthy opponents, so when they announced that we had won, it was just so exciting! What a recognition! Though, when I look at the staff and all that we do for and with our wonderful young people, it feels like recognition of the very best kind. We are really delighted.”
    
Downlands Community School in West Sussex was awarded the STEM trophy for coordinating and managing the Sussex Science Learning Partnership (SLP), which provides subject specific continuous professional development (CPD) for primary and secondary schools and FE providers in the area. Three 4Clubs have raised the profile of STEM subjects nationwide.

Catering and procurement

The School Catering Award was presented to Finham Park 2 in Coventry for its Food Preparation and Nutrition room, which has 20 cooking stations for pupils to work independently. The school also runs a ‘Grub Club’ - an after school club for Pupil Premium and vulnerable students where they are taught to cook a cheap, healthy meal.
    
The School Procurement Award was taken home by Addington School & Wokingham Borough Council for its modular buildings contract. The expansion will enable an additional 50 local children with special educational needs and disabilities to be educated closer to home, with the school’s capacity boosted to more than 250 students due to the extra space. Sixty to seventy per cent of the building work for the new block will be completed offsite, helping to keep disruption to the school and its students at a minimum.
    
The School Recruitment Award, sponsored by Randstad Education, was awarded to Sturton-by-Stow Primary School in Lincoln for its work carrying out interviews remotely. Following advice from HR, pre-employment checks were adapted so that they can be completed remotely whilst complying with safer recruitment. The School Business Manager held video calls with successful candidates, who displayed the necessary documents on the screen and then sent copies for verification by the local authority.