6 July 2011

British Sugar to support prestigious new education awards scheme


British Sugar is today announced as one of the high profile partner organisations for a brand new educational initiative, the Academy Excellence Awards.  The Awards celebrate academic achievement by academy students in years 11, 12 and 13 in English, Humanities, Mathematics, Science and Technology.

The winners wil be revealed at a special Awards Dinner, hosted by televisions presenter and newscaster, Kate Silverton, at the University of Nottingham on 6 July 2011.  The winners in each category will recieve £1,500 cash and an incredible 'money can't buy' prize.

British Sugar will offer both the winner and the runner-up in the awards' technology category a one-week internship at its Wissington Sugar Factory near Downham Market in Norfolk.

Wissington is the largest beet sugar factory in the world, the most efficient in Europe and produces over 400,000 tonnes of sugar annually.  Students will learn about the factory's use of technology to transform the inputs (sugar beet) into a myriad of sustainable products.

After meeting the Group Executive, the two students will follow the 'homegrown sugar story'; from beet harvesting, to sugar manufacture, to the production of co-products.  They will also get to see how sugar is used to make food.  At the end of the week the students will share their thoughts on how British manufacturing can be made more relevant to young people.

British Sugar is part of AB Sugar and is the leading supplier of sugar to the UK market; producing over 1 million tonnes of sugar in the UK.  In addition, it produces a range of co-products, including animal feed made from sugar beet pulp, lime for soil conditioning, recycled soil for landscaping, Bioethanol, and even 140 million sustainably-grown tomatoes.

Other organisations joining British Sugar in offering once-in-a-lifetime experiences to Academy Excellence Awards-winning students are:

  • Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland (ASGBI) - Science category
  • Department of Energy and Climate Change - Mathematics category
  • Euro RSCG - English category
  • TUI Travel - Humanities category
  • Univerisity of Nottingham - Sustainability group award

For more information about the awards, visit www.academyexcellenceawards.co.uk.

Further information

Sharon Fisher
Communications Manager, British Sugar plc
Telephone: 01733 563171
Email: sharon.fisher@britishsugar.com

The Academy Excellence Awards
Amy McLaren or Alex Bevis
Colman Getty
Telephone: 020 7631 2666
Mobile: 07980 843088
Email: amy@colmangetty.co.uk or alex@colmangetty.co.uk

Notes to Editors:
  • The Awards are open to students in Y11, 12 & 13 studying at academies in England.
  • Academy Principals are invited to nominate one different student per subject category (English, Mathematics, Science, Technology, Humanities) and one group for the group category.
  • Nominated students will be required to answer an essay question set by subject specialists at the University of Nottingham.
  • The shortlisted students in each category will be invited to attend an Inspiration Day and Awards Dinner at the University of Nottingham on 6 July, where the winners will be announced.  FOR A PRESS PASS, PLEASE CONTACT COLMAN GETTY.
  • 2010/11 is the pilot year for the Academy Excellence Awards.  The number of subject categories is likely to be expanded in 2011/12 once the success of the pilot year has been evaluated.
  • The Awards steering group members are: Andrew Adonis, Director of Institute of Government and former Secretary of State for Transport and Minister of Schools; Anthony McClaran, former Chief Executive of UCAS and now QAA; David Greenaway, Vice-Chancellor of Nottingham University; Kate Hobhouse, Chairman of Fortnum & Mason; Tim Hastie-Smith, National Director of Scripture Union; David Wootten, Chair or Independent Academies Association and Chief Executive of Djanogly City Academy; Deborah Perry, Head of Programmes, Academies, Specialist Schools and Academies Trust; Philip Cantwell, Principal of the Malcolm Arnold Academy; Barbara Harrison, Independent Education Advisor and former Chief Executive of the Girls Day School Trust; David Ross, founder of the David Ross Foundation; Christine Homer, David Ross Foundation trustee.
  • The Academy Excellence Awards are pleased to partner in association with the Independent Academies Association (IAA), the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) and the University of Nottingham.
  • The Academy Excellence Awards are sponsored by the David Ross Foundation.


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