Pastoral care teachers supporting students’ social development and emotional wellbeing will be put in the spotlight at the county’s annual teacher awards.

Nominations for the Kent Teacher of the Year Awards are only open until noon this Friday (March 1) to praise the unsung heroes of primary and secondary schools and further education colleges.

Sally Williams, Director of Salus, is on the judging panel for the awards and champion of the pastoral care category.

“I am absolutely passionate about the pastoral support that’s offered to the children and young people of Kent,” she said. “We know they face many challenges and the teachers that support them in school make the difference to their everyday lives.”

She added that support could come from “a teaching assistant, a caretaker, head of year – even through to a head teacher – we are really looking for those champions who change the wellbeing of a child.”

The Kent Teacher of the Year Awards are organised by the KM Charity Team and open to nominations for anyone making a difference to the success of a school or college whether they are teachers, support staff or volunteers.

A panel of judges will select winners for each local authority area as well as overall county champions. Judging the entries will be representatives from University of Greenwich, Kreston Reeves, Social Enterprise Kent, Medway Youth Trust, Canterbury Christ Church University, Loop CR, Diggerland, Kent Further Education, Kape HR, KCS, Towergate Insurance, The Education People, Kent Sport and Physical Education, University of Kent, EduKit, Kent County Council, Medway Council, Three R’s Teacher Recruitment, and Hornby.

Around 50 district winners from primary and secondary schools, special schools and colleges will be invited to a glittering awards dinner staged at the Ashford International Hotel in May.

A booklet featuring details on why each winner was chosen will be distributed across Kent and Medway schools to share best practice.

To nominate, visit www.KentTeacherOfTheYear.co.uk

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