1 of 10

The Art of the Winning Entry

​

Jonny Hall

Head of Marketing, Mowden Hall School

2 of 10

There will be more!

What’s available out there?

3 of 10

Award categories

  • Consider all of the different categories and relevance �to your school
  • You may wish to apply for one or two categories, �but don’t blanket apply for them all
  • Decide on a focus and stick to it (academic, �co-curricular, sport, community etc)
  • Think about your marketing plan and what would �be boosted by a nomination/shortlisting

4 of 10

The Guidelines

  • Read them - they are there for a reason
  • Similar to applying for a job - you don’t ignore job description or person person specification
  • If they include ‘questions to consider’, make sure �you answer them in your application
  • Too many high quality entries fall short because �they fail to address the specific criteria.

5 of 10

The Judges

  • Often awards websites will include details of who is judging - Heads, industry experts
  • Do your research - website, LinkedIn etc - find out more about their schools
  • Look for the similarities with your school and take advantage in your application - natural to look for connection and familiarity

6 of 10

The Application - What to do

  • Tell a story
  • Be positive - remember success is relative
  • Be personal - unique to your school
  • Be proud - humbleness doesn’t stand out
  • Be authentic - don’t be ‘too polished’
  • Be clear and engaging - don’t overcomplicate
  • Be funny - don’t take yourself too seriously

7 of 10

The Application - What to do

  • Upload supporting evidence�
  • Focus on one initiative or project - don’t be all things to all men�
  • Include some evidence to support narrative -
    • Quantitative (results, senior scholarships)
    • Qualitative (quotes from parents, pupils, external agencies like ISI and Good Schools Guide)�
  • But….

8 of 10

The Application - What not to do

  • Avoid making it just a list of achievements and quotes
  • Avoid the common ‘buzz words’ or generic phrases - everyone has the best pastoral care!
  • Avoid waffle - one well written paragraph is better �than half a page of filler
  • Avoid going off-topic - if it’s a community award, �don’t talk about your great Nursery provision.

9 of 10

Some final tips

  • Collaboration - work together, but make sure there is only �one responsible person for writing the final application.
  • Cost - some awards do cost, but it has no impact.
  • Context -
    • ❌ “We offer many opportunities”
    • ✅ “92% of pupils participate in at least three � co-curricular programmes”
  • Impact - keep going back to the why.
  • What is your school’s one thing?

10 of 10

Thank you for

listening.

​

Any questions?