Employability Solutions Team Awards

In December, we celebrated our 2nd annual Employability Solutions Team Awards. This was a chance to celebrate our wonderful team and all their hard work over the past year.

Best Newcomer Awards

This award seeks to acknowledge our newer team members, those who hit the ground running and made an immediate impact!

Our Best Newcomer Award for Kirklees goes to Lily Collis-Hamilton!

‘Lily has arrived with a bang and she has been willing to get stuck in from the start and has been putting in 100% from day one. She has easily slotted into the team and is aligned with our values. She has a caring nature and a natural ability to act quickly supporting the complex needs of the students. Since starting, she’s set up vocational tasters, organised industry visits and inspired students to explore their career options.’

Unfortunately, Lily couldn’t attend so her award was collected by Sally Wilson and Nadene Pinnock.

Our Best Newcomer Award for Liverpool goes to Suzi Law!

‘Suzi has made an incredible impression at ES despite the short time she has been with us. She has an infectious personality and positive energy. Her genuine care and empathy create an environment where young people feel safe, supported and understood. She consistently goes above and beyond for the young people, including finding ways to arrange childcare as a single parent to accompany two young people to a youth residential who struggled with confidence. She is a delight to work with and her contagious positivity fills the days with laughter.’

Rising Star Awards

This award goes to that colleague who is the one to watch… A person abound with potential, ideas and solutions! A real team player, representing our brand with integrity!

Our Rising Star Award for Kirklees goes to Sam Trayte!

‘Sam is a ‘gem of a human’, always trying different things, putting forward ideas not many would think of and always thinking outside the box. She always strives to maximise the impact of their time during the working day, offering help to any team member who needs it and is always the voice of reason. She actively seeks to understand the viewpoints and lived experiences of others, both staff and students and to meet their needs. Overcoming their own anxieties daily, stepping in to do new things they are uncomfortable with, to help the team and young people.’

Our Rising Star Award for Liverpool goes to Megan Birchall!

‘Megan brings an exceptional blend of knowledge, passion, and work ethic to everything she does. Her expertise is invaluable in supporting the progression of young people in our community. With a kind-hearted approach, she goes above and beyond to ensure every young person feels supported, valued, and empowered to take the next steps in their journey. Quick to offer ideas and solutions, stepping in to support the team at every turn. Her genuine thoughtfulness stands out, she constantly looks for ways to help others. Megan has incredibly supported no less than 42 young people into work this year, and many more into further education or training.’

Social Impact Award

Our mission of transforming young lives and building resilient communities can be seen in our social impact data. This award is for someone who goes above and beyond to create meaningful impact both internally and externally. As a social enterprise, this award truly embodies that approach that makes us unique… this is a really important award for us!

Our Social Impact Awards goes to Sally Wilson and Laura Howson!

‘Together you both win the social impact award, because most people voted for both of you, as a unit, working together, going to fundraising activities to provide enriching experiences to our young people, taking on sponsored walks to Scarborough, giving up your time in school holidays to make sure our young people stay connected and safe, providing opportunities for students to be an asset. You guys put on events, like group cookery, Halloween parties, end-of-year prom and Duke of Edinburgh awards that include weekend camping expeditions in not so wonderful conditions, all outside of their roles. Campaigning to support charities that are close to their hearts. Sally even volunteered once to get knocked out in a boxing ring to raise money for Young Minds. They hype up everyone to get involved, dress up, show up and never give up!’

Unfortunately, Laura was unable to attend the Team Awards so Sally collected both awards.

Transformation Awards

Transformation is one of our core values, ‘Inspiring a culture where transformation is possible!’

The winner of our Transformation Award for Kirklees goes to Andy Hussey!

‘Andy is an amazing person who just gets the job done as well as he can… a fantastic role model. Balanced and consistent with the young people and staff alike, no ego. Always willing to lend a hand with any time he has spare, even if that’s just 20 minutes when an offer of help and support is put forward to the entire team. He is comfortable to ask for help and acknowledge his own areas of development. Unwavering commitment to supporting students, in particular one student who has gone from being a disengaged, reluctant learner to accessing a full timetable. The work being done by stealth is truly working to transform this young person’s life. Conscientious, thorough, with a heart of gold, Andy has integrity through them like a stick of rock.’

The winner of our Transformation Award for Liverpool is Olivia Thomas!

‘Olivia has grown so much as a person since joining us, she is always happy to help and support anyone, sharing ideas and contributing to the wider team. She is always looking for ways to improve, is proactive and diligently takes ownership and care of their space, an environment that is so loved and well-cared for that it extends to the young people in their care and creates a feeling of safety. She is an incredibly positive and resourceful person with a great ability to build positive relationships, loved by everyone! The high energy, motivation, and ability to adapt and contextualise learning has students feeling well-supported and able to be themselves. Olivia is an asset, and every day is developing into a reflective, dynamic, and adaptive teacher, alongside studying for a PGCE.’

Inclusion Awards

Inclusion is one of our core values, ‘Creating a community where everyone feels included!’

The winner of our Inclusion Award for Kirklees is Dwight Simpson!

‘Dwight is a consistent presence and a beautiful soul, who has the utmost respect for staff and students alike and is well-respected in return. He communicates effectively and makes students feel at ease in his presence. He has a way of being able to truly understand the needs of the young people and find ways to support their learning in a way that really works. He is always willing to help out, go wherever he is needed, provide cover and support and is a real team player. Dwight is happy to get involved and always has some profound input or piece of advice to give.’

The winner of our Inclusion Award for Liverpool is Marie Rood!

‘Marie creates a culture within the classroom and the building as a whole where everyone, staff and students alike, are included and accepted. She has amazing ideas on how to include outside activities into the curriculum and be truly alternative for the young people. She establishes respectful relationships with the learners, whatever their backgrounds. She is amazing at what she does! She demonstrates first-hand commitment to meeting the needs of, and enhancing the learning experience of our students. She would always seek a means of ‘building our students up’, in the classroom. She takes things in her stride, her relationships with students are built on trust and respect and her confidence just shines!’

Motivation Awards

Motivation is one of our core values, ‘Being responsible for instigating a culture of possibility!’

The winner of our Motivation Award for Kirklees goes to Kate Williams!

‘Kate makes such a big difference in the lives of our young people and massively improves staff morale. She is willing to take charge when necessary and is always happy to support and encourage staff. The young people adore her, and it is easy to see why! They are at the heart of all her decisions and the core of her support. Kate is the life and soul, an inspiration, always positive and motivating and can often be heard asking “Where’s your positive spirit”. She will do anything for those kids, including learning Snoop Dog’s Christmas rap so she can join in at break times.’

The winner of our Motivation Award for Liverpool is Michelle Ginley!

‘Michelle is the epitome of motivation. She comes in every day with a huge smile on her face and exudes calm even in the stormiest of classrooms! She is always looking for solutions, she brings the fun to every challenge throughout the working day. Michelle is always looking for ways to celebrate the young people, there is nothing she wouldn’t do for them, constantly motivating them to get involved and get on life and occasionally for the staff too! Michelle really shines in her role!’

Education Awards

Education is one of our core values, ‘Gifting an education that is individual, meaningful and right for our students!’

The winner of our Education Award for Kirklees is Nadene Pinnock!

‘Nadene is inclusive, creative and adaptive. She gives lots of motivation and praise, shares resources and planning and produces a high standard of work in the classroom. She is always happy to share skills and experience, including setting up maths lessons to support staff with their numeracy skills. She will go away if something is not working and come in every single day with a new plan. Nadene is an absolute star of a teacher, her maths lessons are top-notch, the way she delivers education is second to none and she has all the qualities and attributes needed to thrive in an educational setting.

The winner of our Education Award for Liverpool is Anna Kithan!

‘Anna is an amazing teacher who goes above and beyond to individualise and personalise the curriculum for each of her learners. She understands, gets to know the learners and builds the foundations of trust, she is able to reduce and remove barriers so the learners will work to achieve their true potential. She’s not afraid to ask for help and advice when it is needed and will take on board ideas and strategies from other staff and SENDCo’s. She is able to model resilience in abundance and is always encouraging the young people, making everyone feel included and valued. She goes above and beyond to individualise and personalise the curriculum for students and doesn’t only think of the students in her class. She’s fully committed to good quality alternative education wants to be innovative, willing to share and support the team, it should come as no surprise that our winner was successful when she applied for the Curriculum Manager role.’

L.O.V.E Award

Living Our Values Everyday… the biggie, the outstanding achievement, the person that leads with LOVE and embodies our ethos… they live and breathe ALL of our ES values consistently and truly shines!

This Award is a big one… The winner of the Living Our Values Everyday Award is Lindsay O’Kane!

‘Lindsay is a happy bundle of love and has love at the heart of everything she does. She strives to make the centres inclusive, seeing the very best in every student and showing unwavering positive regard, no matter what comes her way. She motivates the learners continually throughout each day and is always planning the next ‘thing’ to do with them or imaginative ways of engaging them. Lindsay is all about the students and their experience. She truly loves the learners and wants them to succeed, she will support and motivate them in any way they can – even when they don’t want to be motivated. She supports staff to incorporate different approaches into their lessons and will help them to find solutions for any issues that may be developing. She’s always on hand, putting everyone first, eager to learn, has a thirst for knowledge and information that will help her own growth and always wants to do better. She can talk the hind leg off a donkey, wears her heart on their sleeve and just oozes love for everybody, staff, students, parents, professionals and strangers.’

If you would like to see previous award winners, follow our Humans of ES Instagram!