Teachers and technicians using technology to unlock a love of learning could win a trophy at the Kent Teacher of the Year Awards.

But time is running out as online nominations must be made by school staff, parents, or students by noon this Friday, March 1.

From pupils tapping on tablets in the classroom to parents emailing to say their little ones will be off sick, computers have become an integral part of school life.

And Richard Langshaw of IT recycling business Loop CR, who is on the awards judging panel, believes that teachers are vital to ensure the UK remains a leading player in the multi-billion-pound IT sector.

He said: “As a judge, what I’m looking for is people with IT skills who are able to put them across to the pupils - so that we can get building the next generation of IT skills the country is going to need in the future.

“We always have been a leading IT country so we need to keep that up. We need to encourage people from a very young age to build up IT skills.”

Award categories include primary, secondary, newly-qualified and further education teachers. Anyone associated with a school – including colleagues, parents, and students – are welcome to put forward an unsung hero for an award.

Organised by the KM Charity Team, the event also honours non-teaching members of staff such as midday supervisors, caretakers or office staff, along with volunteers and teams.

The panel of judges, who will select winners for each local authority area as well as overall county champions, include representatives from the Kent, Greenwich and Canterbury Christ Church universities, as well as Ashford International Hotel, Three R’s Teacher Recruitment, Kreston Reeves, Social Enterprise Kent, Diggerland, Kent Sport and Physical Education, Salus, Kent Further Education, Kape HR, KCS, Towergate Insurance, The Education People, Medway Youth Trust, EduKit, Kent and Medway councils and Hornby.

Approximately 50 district winners will be revealed at an awards dinner at the Ashford International Hotel in May. Overall county champions will receive trophies plus individual prizes will be donated to selected winners by the judges.

Nominate at www.KentTeacherOfTheYear.co.uk

Follow stories about the Kent Teacher of the Year Awards on Twitter @InspireSchools1 and use the hashtag #KTOTY