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FE lecturers play a vital role in inspiring learners.
Further Education (FE) lecturers play a crucial role in inspiring and empowering learners. The very best go beyond teaching; they take time to understand their students and work closely with them to build the skills, values, and confidence and self-belief needed not only for academic success but also for personal growth and positive contribution to society. We’d love to hear how your colleague creates a learning environment that’s engaging, inspiring, and full of high expectations; a place where students feel motivated, included and ready to progress.
Who can enter?
Open to all teaching staff working in UK Further Education colleges delivering qualifications from Entry Level to Level 3.
Nominator Guidance
FE Lecturer of the Year – Nominator Guidance.
What makes a good entry?
Thank you for taking the time to nominate your colleague for the FE Lecturer of the Year award. Your nomination plays an important role in showing judges tgheir impact.
Awards criteria
A well-structured entry is key. Start with a brief summary that highlights the main reasons for the nomination. Use clear, jargon-free language, and ensure each criterion is addressed thoroughly. Organise the content with headings and sub-headings.
Include details about how the nominee overcomes the most challenging aspects of their role. It’s important that the entry is written by someone who truly knows the nominee, or that the nominator has consulted with those who do.
Evidence and impact
Evidence of impact is the most important aspect of your entry. Our judges look for clear, concise examples that demonstrate the nominee’s impact on students, colleagues, and the broader education community—whether on a regional or national scale. If, for instance, a Headteacher is credited with turning a school around, it’s important to show exactly how this was achieved.
Impact on Learners: Provide specific examples of their direct influence on learners. Highlight practical evidence of high-quality, inspirational teaching that encourages a love of learning and demonstrates excellent classroom skills. For teaching assistants and school leaders, include evidence of inspirational support, leadership, and creative approaches that engage and motivate both children and staff.
Impact on Colleagues: Describe how the nominee has positively influenced their colleagues. Have they supported others or helped them improve? Consider their role within the staff community beyond the classroom or staffroom. Have they boosted morale or consistently uplifted those around them in some way? Our judges love hearing about these contributions, no matter how big or small.
Impact on the Wider College Community: Highlight the nominee’s overall contribution to the life of the college and the community.
Wider Impact: Where a nominee has shown impact further afield, locally or nationally, please detail this and the impact of that work.
Personalised details are what make your nominee truly stand out.
Bring the entry to life
Written statements and quotes provide a much more compelling narrative than data – especially comments from parents or pupils whose lives have been positively impacted by the nominee. These are most effective when they reference something specific, for example, ‘Ms X made a huge difference to me when she… the effect this had was …’
Where relevant, you could include supportive quotes from a broad range of sources, such as senior leaders, businesses, health or social care agencies, and local community voices. These perspectives highlight the nominee’s impact beyond the classroom.
It’s essential that someone who knows the nominee well writes the entire entry, not just detailing what they do but also providing specific examples and the impact of their work. Personalisation is key.
That special something
Put simply, if your nominee isn’t shortlisted, what would our judges be missing out on? Share the values and truly unique examples of practice that set your nominee apart—something related to their role that has made a real difference to children’s lives. Our judges are particularly keen to see initiatives or approaches that are unprecedented in the college or unlikely to be found elsewhere, especially when they demonstrate innovation and determination, rather than just long working hours. What makes this nominee a National Award winner, and how could showcasing their exceptional practice inspire and benefit other educators across the UK?
Wider contribution
Highlight how your colleague has made a significant contribution beyond their core responsibilities. Consider areas such as their involvement in extra-curricular activities, community engagement, or initiatives that enhance the wider college environment.
You could share examples such as:
- Leading or supporting clubs or events
- Organising or participating in fundraising activities or community outreach programmes or any achievements they have contributed to that reflect their broader impact within the educational community
- Championing eco-friendly initiatives, such as Eco-Schools or sustainability projects or contributing to the development of children through other enrichment activities
Provide clear examples to demonstrate how their efforts have gone above and beyond, enriching the college experience and making a positive impact.
Personal journey and inspiration
To help our judges understand the nominee (individual or team) as a whole, beyond their role, please share what has shaped their personal and professional journey. Were there key influences from their own education, a significant person, or a defining event in their life? What inspired them to pursue a career in education? Your insight into their motivations and background will help our judges appreciate the individuals behind the educators.
What to avoid when writing your entry?
Data
Unless the criteria specifically request this, although we expect to see some student progress or attainment data, or recognition by external agencies to show your nominee’s impact on students, our judges prefer this to be kept to a minimum. They carry out due diligence if your entry reaches shortlisting stage. At this point they can obtain data / Ofsted reports.
Entries that are not unique
We want to emphasise the importance of submitting unique, personalised nominations that reflect the individual / team you’re celebrating. Recently, we’ve noticed that AI-generated or AI-assisted entries often contain repetitive or generic statements that simply echo the criteria without offering real insight. These entries lack the personal touch and specific details that make a nomination truly stand out.
If you choose to use AI for support, please ensure your entry still reflects your own voice, includes specific examples, and offers personalised evidence or testimonials that highlight the nominee’s unique impact. Remember, it’s the details and authentic stories that truly bring your nominee to life!
Links
You can submit up to 3 additional evidence files along with your written entry. Hyperlinks to other documents, videos, social media etc should be classed as additional evidence and not part of the entry.
Specific guidance for this category
1 Learner engagement
Show how your nominee places learners at the heart of everything they do. Judges want to see evidence that the lecturer is committed to every student, providing the encouragement and support needed to succeed and meet high expectations. Share:
- The ways in which your nominee supports academic achievement and wider personal development, such as resilience, independence or self-belief. Describe how they motivate all learners to aim high and believe in their own potential
- Provide evidence of improved engagement, attendance, retention or achievement and share the impact of this – and how it’s shown
2 Learner-focused flexibility in delivery
This section should show how the nominee adapts their teaching to meet the diverse needs of their FE learners. Judges are looking for thoughtful, responsive practice that enables all students to make progress.
Provide examples of how learning is broken down into manageable steps where needed
Detail any approaches used to monitor progress and how your colleague uses this to adjust resources or support as required
Strong entries in this category will show the impact of personalised learning on individual students.
3 Learning and development – Students and self
Judges want to see examples of collaboration with colleagues, support staff, professionals or external organisations to enhance learner outcomes – not just academic, but also how these partnerships contribute towards students’ readiness for future pathways. Ensure you can evidence the impact of any such collaborations.
When documenting our nominee’s self-development, think about and share evidence of the nominee’s commitment to life-long learning, including professional development, reflection or adopting new approaches and show how their own learning benefits students and influences wider practice.
4 Wider contribution and impact
Stand-out nominees in this category make a significant wider contribution beyond day-to-day teaching. Judges want to see in the entry how the lecturer themselves does this, and also how they encourage and support learners to contribute positively to their college and wider community. For your nominee, consider things such as:
- Curriculum development, enrichment, mentoring or leadership
To show the impact of ensuring their learners contribute more widely, consider sharing partner feedback where students have been involved in activities beyond their course.
General tips for a strong FE Lecturer of the Year entry
Write as someone who knows the nominee well. Judges want authentic stories and examples, not general statements.
Show their uniqueness. The entry should reflect the nominee’s own strengths, skills, and experiences. Avoid using a generic template with only small edits — judges want to see what sets this person apart.
Judges will ask themselves
What makes this lecturer stand out within Further Education, and how has their impact been evidenced in the entry?
What are they doing over and above what is expected in their professional role?
You can download this information here
Award Criteria
Please address each of these points in your entry, under the following headings.
Learner engagement
How does your nominee show commitment to every student, challenging them to aim high, supporting them in achieving their aspirations, while also nurturing values, confidence, and wider personal development.
Learner-focused flexibility in delivery
Share examples of how your colleague sets goals that are challenging for each learner, breaking them down into appropriate, manageable steps where needed, and the impact of this on learner outcomes. Tell us about the steps your nominee has in place for monitoring the experience and progress of each learner, and any adjustments used, to ensure the needs of individual pupils and the class as a whole are met, with a focus on both academic achievement and personal growth.
Learning and development – Students and self
How do they engage others to support students’ learning and development; Tell us about their collaborations with other colleagues, other professionals, and outside agencies/organisations. Consider both educational and personal development outcomes, including building resilience, confidence, and readiness for future pathways.
Looking at their own professional and personal development – how do they demonstrate a commitment to life-long learning?
Wider contribution and impact
How does your nominee contribute to the life of the college beyond the classroom and what impact does this have on everyone involved? How do they help learners contribute positively within the college and the wider community?
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