First ever national awards to recognise excellence in BTEC qualifications
The first National BTEC Awards are all about celebrating the outstanding achievements of students, teachers, schools and colleges in vocational learning.
The Awards will be hosted by Radio One DJ Scott Mills, at the Royal Society of Arts in London and will be attended by nominated students, teachers, and leaders in education. John Hayes, Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning will be opening the ceremony.
Today’s Awards ceremony is being held in recognition of the nearly a million students around the country who are studying BTEC qualifications this year. Pearson UK, who own Edexcel, the awarding body for BTECs, announced that it was inviting nominations for the National BTEC Awards in April 2011. In total, over 450 nominations were received, across the award categories.
The ceremony will see the winners of the following four top prizes, as well as eight sector-specific winners, formally announced:
- Outstanding BTEC Student of the Year: Grant Ridley, National Enterprise Academy
- Outstanding BTEC Teacher/Tutor of the Year: Euthan Newman, South Thames College
- Outstanding BTEC School/College of the Year: Newlands Girls’ School
- Outstanding BTEC Adult Learner: Keith Southern, Mid Cheshire College
A full list of categories and winners is included in the notes below.
The judging panel for the Awards, who will all be present at the ceremony, included:
- Gerard Kelly, Editor of the Times Education Supplement
- Robert Halfon, MP for Harlow
- Despina Panayi, a former Teaching Awards winner
- Nick Chambers, Direct of Education Employers Taskforce
Rod Bristow, President, Pearson UK said:
“I am delighted to be hosting the first ever National BTEC Awards today. The quality and number of nominations was incredibly heartening and truly emphasised that it’s high time that vocational excellence is celebrated just as much as we celebrate academic achievement.
Every year, thousands of BTEC students go on to great universities and fantastic jobs. They achieve great things in a wide variety of careers; from business and engineering to ICT and healthcare. It is just as important to support and officially celebrate the hard work and achievements of outstanding BTEC students and their teachers.”
Awards host, Radio One DJ Scott Mills said, “I am very excited to be part of the first ever National BTEC Awards. It is important to recognise the different routes through which young people can achieve their ambitions and today’s ceremony will remind people that vocational education is just as valued and valuable as traditional academic routes.”
About the Awards
The full list of winners of the National BTEC Awards will be formally announced at the ceremony on 7 July 2012, but please contact Depali or Alexa for more information if you wish to speak to specific winners.
The full list of categories is as follows:
- Outstanding BTEC student of the year
- Outstanding BTEC tutor of the year
- Outstanding BTEC centre of the year
- Outstanding contribution to the community by a BTEC student
- Outstanding BTEC student in ICT
- Outstanding BTEC student in Business and Enterprise
- Outstanding BTEC student in Public services
- Outstanding BTEC student in Construction and Engineering
- Outstanding BTEC student in Creative and Media
- Outstanding BTEC student in Healthcare and Science
- Outstanding BTEC student in Hospitality and Beauty
- Outstanding BTEC student on a short course