Our judges don’t want a dry report. They want the story. Tell them how, over the course of 2025–26, you’ve guided your young people towards working life beyond the school gates. Let your pride shine through. Explain why the students in your care benefit from a careers and post-school support programme that genuinely stands head and shoulders above the rest. Bring your story to life with real examples and hard evidence where you can—but spare us the bullet-pointed statistics. Above all, paint a picture. If our judges were to stroll through your corridors, what would they see? Conversations about futures unfolding in classrooms? Employers shaking hands with confident sixth-formers? Ambition in the air?

Here are the key questions your entry should tackle. Keep the spotlight firmly on careers and post-school support, rather than the broader life of the school.

• Why is your careers and post-school support programme so distinctive?
  What gives your programme an edge over others? Which accomplishments and milestones make it worthy of national recognition? (Around 200 words.)

• How has your 2025–26 programme responded to the particular needs of your students and ensured a positive, meaningful experience?
  Tell us about the projects or initiatives this year that have made you especially proud. (Around 150 words.)

• What difference has your careers and post-school support programme actually made?
  How has your programme equipped your students with the confidence, skills and know-how to thrive in the fast-moving world of 21st-century work? (Around 150 words.)