DLD Wins Independent School of the Year 2020 – Special Judges Prize AND Boarding School of the Year
8th October 20
We are absolutely overjoyed this afternoon as we have been announced as the winner of a Special Judges’ Award for Independent School of the Year 2020 and also as joint winner of the Independent Boarding School of the Year 2020.
The Special Judges’ Award created this year, was announced by the Chief Executive Officer of the Independent Schools’ Council, Julie Robinson, in recognition of our student wellbeing and urban boarding provision. They recognised DLD College London as being a school that is “brimming with energy” and “offers something really special in the sector for its students, combining old and new approaches to education”.
The Independent Schools of the Year Awards are organised by Independent School Parent Magazine and are recognition within the Independent Education sector of the excellent provision of education and pastoral support that we provide to our students.
Full transcripts of the awards announcements are below. They can also be viewed online here.
Special Judges’ Award Announcement
Julie Robinson – CEO of ISC
What a joy it is to come together through these Independent School of the Year Awards to celebrate the great things that schools have achieved, in the face of adversity. It has been a trying time on many fronts and 2020 will be remembered as one of the toughest years in global history, yet schools continue to make a positive difference.
Independent schools have demonstrated their customary adaptability and innovation in the face of international crisis. We’ve been forced to reassess what is really important to our communities and find new ways of working. We’ve been forced to reinvent the delivery of face to face communications, just as we are today. School communities in many cases have led the way and have become worthy examples of excellence in online learning and community support. As we have seen in this years’ winning entries, our schools have reacted by resetting relationships, finding creative solutions, and they’ve been outward looking, coming together and sharing their work, connecting with the wider world for which they prepare pupils. They’ve built kindness in the face of adversity and developed social conscience. Despite the harsh pressures and uncertainties bearing down on schools this year, many of which continue, our schools have triumphed as beacons of hope and positivity. Caring for young people, supporting the local community, these are surely priorities even more so this year. And the school that wins this final prize, will represent all that is good about independent education in a most memorable year.
With congratulations to all nominees, finalists and winners today, its now my honour to announce two final awards.
The first, a special award, made this year by the judges to a school which we felt was brimming with energy and offering something really special in the sector for its students, combining old and new approaches to education. It has been recognised as a winner in one of our other categories today and we felt as a judging panel, that it deserved particular recognition for student wellbeing and urban boarding.
The winner of the judges special award is DLD College London.
Congratulations!
Independent Boarding School of the Year Announcement
The Finalists are:
Bryanston School
DLD College London
Elstree School
Rugby School
Sherborne Girls
West Buckland School
The joint winners are DLD College London and Elstree School, who together represented the astonishing breadth of great boarding in the UK, including innovative Sixth Form boarding in the heart of London and flexible family style prep school boarding – well done!
