Our judging process
After the closing date for entries, the Shine committee and our judges review every single entry sent in.
A first-stage judging panel then narrow the entries down, nominating up to eight entries in each category.
Then, two weeks later, a much wider second-stage judging panel of professionals from across the UK’s media spectrum decides the winners and runners-up in each category.
We have clear judging criteria and every entry is judged fairly, irrespective of its budget. The entry form of every project sits alongside the finished project and is considered as the entrants’ ‘voice in the room’.
The shortlisted publications are then announced on the Shine website and all nominated schools are invited to the reception and awards ceremony at Stationers’ Hall.
At this fantastic awards ceremony, inspirational speakers address our nominees and busy workshops with many of our judges are held. At the culmination of the awards day, the year’s winners and runners-up are announced and the prizes given out.
The Shine School Media Awards are judged by a high profile group of industry professionals
Over the years, our judges have included;
- Mark Allen, Chairman, Mark Allen Group
- Helen Amass from tes
- Alice Audley from Blogosphere magazine
- Glenda Cooper from City University London
- Hugh Dickerson from Google
- Charles Garside from Associated Newspapers
- Author and journalist Professor Simon Heffer
- Melanie Hough from Getty Images Hulton Archive
- Liz Hunt from the Daily Mail
- Dr. Sharon Maxwell-Magnus, Head of Media Group at University of Hertfordshire
- Michael Harrison – Past Master, The Worshipful Company of Marketors
- Doug Wills, Emeritus Editor, The Evening Standard
- Neil Jones from BOBST
- Neil Lovell from The Printing Charity
- Steve Marchant from The Cartoon Museum
- Michael Murphy, the former principal of Stationers’ Crown Woods Academy
- Julie Murray from the Copyright Licensing Association
- Bettine Pellant, CEO, Picon
- Simon Esterson – Owner, Esterson Associates
- Andy Gregory – Night Editor, the Daily Mail
- Emma Robinson from NCTJ
- Cartoonist Gerald Scarfe
- Tandy Wakeford from TwoSides
- Debbie Waldron-Hoines, Director at Avant-Tout Management Services
- Katherine Whitbourn, freelance journalist
- Susan Wright from Earth Island Publishing
- and the late, great Terry Mansfield CBE
So you’re off and running with your project…
How do you ensure it’s most likely to win one of the many prizes on offer?
Why not take some advice from our judges, who recommend you showcase;
- Editorial content that reflects effort, enthusiasm and creative skills
- Articles that show literacy and accuracy as well as flair, particularly about hot-button topics that really matter to your peers
- Covers and front pages which really stand out
- Design which combines imagination with readability, helped by clever use of pictures, type and graphics, particularly if they are inspired by leading-edge publications
- Best use of all resources and departments within the school including Business, IT and Art departments
- Evidence of commercial strategy in making the publication viable. For instance: Was there a business plan? Did pupils negotiate sponsorship or advertising deals? How was the selling price calculated?
- Impressive original photography or artwork, created by a pupil, which enhances an article or the general appeal of the publication
- An online or easily-circulated PDF version of a print project
- Inspirational teachers who have nurtured a desire in pupils to produce a finished publication and who have helped them experience the exhilaration and satisfaction of working as a team to achieve their objectives
- Outstanding pupils who contribute something special to the project. It will be someone who has shown innovation, enterprise, good communication skills and is an inspirational team leader