JAY BRADLEY of The Academy of St Francis of Assisi in Liverpool has scooped a Silver Teaching Award in the category ‘Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School’, supported by SSAT.
Selected from thousands of nominations, Jay is one of just 65 winners who were celebrated on ‘Thank A Teacher Day’, as the national Pearson Teaching Awards marks its 20th year of celebrating excellence in education.
Celebrations took place in schools and colleges across England, Wales and Northern Ireland as the prestigious Silver Pearson Teaching Awards trophies are presented to outstanding teachers, teaching assistants, headteachers and lecturers.
At the Academy of St Francis of Assisi, staff, governors and students gathered for an assembly to surprise Jay and hand over his coveted trophy. The heart-warming moment saw a surprised Jay receive his trophy while the whole school community cheered him on.
Head of Music Jay Bradley joined the Academy over three years ago and has transformed the music department. Students have the opportunity to try projects such as Body Percussion, Beat Boxing, Film Music, Samba band and a range of school choirs. He is described as a truly inspirational teacher and a fantastic role model for students.
Head of School, Tracey Greenough said: “Jay has been teaching at the Academy for almost four years and is a real asset to our school community. He is an outstanding teacher who inspires every student that enters his classroom. His creative approaches to teaching and learning, along with his passion and enthusiasm brings lessons to life. He’s not only totally transformed the music department but is transforming our students’ lives daily. Jay is a worthy winner of this coveted national award.”
Earlier this month, the Academy of St Francis of Assisi become a Musical Futures Champion School and Jay became a Musical Futures Champion Teacher. Musical Futures are an international organisation that promote a love of musical learning and work with many young people across the world.
The Pearson Teaching Awards are an annual celebration of exceptional teachers, founded in 1998 by Lord Puttnam to recognise the life-changing impact an inspirational teacher can have on the lives of the young people they teach.
Jay will now join fellow Silver Award winners, along with three Scottish Education Award winners and three winners of the Professional Teaching Awards Cymru, at the 20th UK Ceremony of the Pearson Teaching Awards, a ceremony held in central London on 21st October. There they will find out which of them has won one of just 12 Gold Plato Awards, the UK’s “Oscars for Teachers”.
The October ceremony, titled “Britain’s Classroom Heroes”, will be filmed and broadcast by the BBC as a showcase of excellence in education.
Rod Bristow, President of Pearson UK, said: “A huge congratulations to all those receiving a silver trophy today. They should feel extremely proud of their achievements and join an inspirational group of Teaching Award winners from the past two decades. It’s an honour for Pearson to support these Awards each year – it’s so vital to recognise and celebrate those in the teaching profession, for their commitment to education and for the impact they have on young people’s lives.”
You can see the full list of winners at: https://www.teachingawards.com
