The ISA Awards

The ISA Awards is an annual event that celebrates success in our Members’ schools, and recognises the breadth of quality and provision in independent education across the country.

They offer an excellent opportunity to demonstrate your schools’ high quality provision, and to celebrate your success with staff and fellow ISA Members. The Awards also allow you to promote your achievements both to existing and prospective parents, and the wider community, by providing schools with national publicity and the chance to proudly promote this via their own marketing platforms.

You can download a timeline of the entry process for the 2020 Awards here.

The ISA Awards 2019

The winners for the ISA Awards 2019 are announced!

Congratulations to our winners of the ISA Awards 2019 for their outstanding provision and tremendous achievements. We hope you will proudly share your success with your schools, parents and wider community.

Please click on each award below to view our 2019 Award Winners.

ISA Early Years Award for Excellence and Innovation in Provision

Winner: St George’s Preparatory School

Applications were sought from schools that evidenced the outstanding quality of their Early Years setting. Judges looked at wide-ranging evidence including inspection outcomes and value-added data, and innovation in provision of the Early Years curriculum.

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ISA Junior/Prep School Award for Academic Excellence and Innovation

Winner: Adcote School 

This award was open to schools with provision covering the Junior/Prep years in the 5-13 age range. Judges were looking for examples of excellence and innovation, whose positive impact on pupils was fully monitored and evaluated.

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ISA Senior School Award for Academic Excellence and Innovation

Winner: Holme Grange School

This award was open to schools with pupils in secondary and/or post-16 provision. Judges looked for innovative programmes and approaches that were different from mainstream provision with a clearly-evidenced positive impact on pupils

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ISA Award for Outstanding Sport (Small School*)
*1 class per year group

Winner:  Woodlands School, Great Warley 

Applications were sought from small schools evidencing their outstanding sporting provision in relation to opportunities offered to pupils, including partnership work with state schools and the wider community. Judges looked for entries demonstrating high levels of participation in sport across the school.
 ISA Award for Outstanding Sport (Large School*)
*more than 1 class per year group

Winner: Colchester High School

Applications were sought from large schools evidencing their outstanding sporting provision in relation to opportunities offered to pupils, including partnership work with state schools and the wider community. Again, judges looked for entries demonstrating high levels of participation in sport across the school.
ISA Award for Excellence and Innovation in the Performing Arts

Winner: Ditcham Park School

Judges looked for evidence of going the extra mile in terms of performing arts provision and achievement, including innovative teaching techniques, or an offering of extraordinary opportunities for pupils that helped to enhance their learning.
ISA Award for Excellence and Innovation in the Fine Arts

Winner: Duke of Kent School

Again, judges looked for evidence of going the extra mile in terms of arts provision and achievement, including innovative teaching techniques, or an offering of extraordinary opportunities for pupils that helped to enhance their learning in the arts.
ISA Award for Excellence in Extra-Curricular Activities

Winner: EF Academy, Torbay

Applicants were sought from schools that could evidence their outstanding extra-curricular provision in relation to opportunities offered to pupils (in addition to sport and music which are covered in other categories).
ISA Award for Excellence and Innovation in Mental Health and Wellbeing

Winner: Thorpe Hall School

This Award welcomed applications with innovative and effective approaches that help ensured pupil and staff wellbeing, including projects on resilience or mindfulness. The judges were looking for school-wide initiatives that focused on prevention, through enhancing self-esteem and inclusion within the school

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ISA Green School Award – New for 2019

Winner: The Firs School

This Award encouraged applications from schools engaging with environmental education within the curriculum, or demonstrating their green credentials through work in the community or further afield to improve habitats and encourage biodiversity.

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ISA Award for Excellence and Innovation in Partnerships

Winner: Alderley Edge School for Girls

Judges looked for evidence of strong partnership working and sharing of opportunities for maintained sector pupils or the wider community, demonstrating a positive impact.
ISA Award for Successful Change Management – New for 2019

Winner: Huddersfield Grammar School  

This new Award recognises that schools are rarely static enterprises and change is sometimes necessary to improve outcomes for pupils. Judges were looking for positive outcomes of change for pupils, be it in the form of restructuring of governance, or major curricular or non-curricular projects.
ISA Award for Outstanding Provision for Learning Support

Winner: Rushmoor School

Judges looked for evidence that schools recognised each child’s needs and identified the support needed to match those needs. They also looked for robust progress monitoring and enabling all staff to have an input into each child’s development.

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ISA Award for Outstanding Community Involvement – Returning for 2019

Winner: Claires Court

Judges welcomed evidence of how schools have involved their pupils in community projects – locally or  further afield, even in other countries – possibly including long-term education or health-related work.

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