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Institute of Teaching and Learning

Teaching Excellence Awards

Teaching Excellence Awards are made in recognition of significant and sustained commitment to excellence in the delivery and/or support of teaching and learning at UG or PGT level. Academic, Lab-based, Technical, Library and other Professional Service colleagues are eligible for the award. Reflecting the evolution of our practice and ways of working, our Teaching Excellence Awards celebrate the strength and diversity of practice in our University of Manchester community.

The Teaching Excellence Awards look for:

  • a commitment to excellence in teaching and/or support for learning over a sustained period, and intellectual engagement with teaching and supporting learning. This should involve evidence of an evidence-informed approach, coherence, and evaluation. 
  • strategic alignment and clear articulation of the ‘need’. (Value)
  • evidence of positive change (Impact) and its Reach, including engagement beyond the nominee's immediate academic or professional role.
Jenni Rose receiving a bouquet of flowers from Prof Duncan Ivison at the Teaching Excellence Awards celebration event
Jenni Rose and Professor Duncan Ivison at the Teaching Excellence Awards 2025

Strategic themes

Submissions should demonstrate how the nominee’s activities contribute to one or two of the following strategic themes:

  • Educational Leadership
  • Inclusive Education
  • Flexible Learning and Digital Delivery
  • Assessment and Feedback
  • Student Voice

Award winners are

Celebrated:

  • Gifted a commemorative trophy
  • Invited to a formal awards ceremony 

Invited to play a role in teaching and learning development at University level:

  • Given the permanent title of Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Teaching and Learning and access to the Fellows Network
  • Encouraged to act as ambassadors for teaching and learning within the University and beyond

Offered personal development opportunities:

  • (Optional) access to the national Advance HE Teaching Excellence Awards pipeline (National Teaching Fellow / Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence) run by the Teaching Excellence team
  • Opportunity to contribute guest post(s) on the University's Teaching Excellence blog, TEA: Teach, Explore, Apply

Number of awards

Number of Awards

The awards will be made on a competitive basis as follows (regardless of strategic theme):

Individual

Team

Top 3:

Award

Top 2:

Award

Next 3:

Highly Commended

Next 2:

Highly Commended

Next 3:

Commended

Next 2:

Commended

 

Total Individual: 9

 

Total Team: 6

 * the panel has discretion to go up to five in any category for exceptional cohorts of nominations.

Who is eligible?

Nominations are invited from:

  • academic, lab-based, technical, library and other Professional Services staff 
  • individuals or teams (up to 15 members per team)*

Individuals and teams may:

  • self-nominate (in which case you will need ONE senior colleague to contribute a supporting statement to your submission form)

or

  • be nominated by a colleague. If you wish to nominate someone else for a Teaching Excellence Award you will need at least TWO other colleagues to add their support to the case that you make on the nominee's behalf.

The panel will take into account that a nominee’s scope for reach, value and impact will look different at different stages of a person’s career and in different disciplines or roles. The quality, extent and relevance of evidence should be commensurate with the individual's context and opportunities, and we look forward to receiving nominations from across the University.

*if your team has more than 15 core members please contact the Teaching Excellence Team at teaching.learning@manchester.ac.uk

How do I submit a nomination?

Formats 

All nominations must be submitted on the Teaching Excellence Case for Award proforma (as a word.docx), and uploaded via the online submission portal (see Submitting your nomination below). The case for award will be accepted in the following formats*:

  • 1000-word written submission (Section 2 of the proforma)
  • a 5 minute pre-recorded presentation e.g. narrated slides, a video or other approach (please add a hyperlink to your presentation within Section 2 of the proforma, as well as uploading a copy of the slides/a transcript, as appropriate)

Colleagues are encouraged to make submissions using the format which best allows them to highlight the reach, value and impact of the nominee’s work. Submissions must be backed up by evidence, both qualitative and quantitative, of the claims made within the narrative. In the case of self-nominations, the Supporting Statement is also a significant piece of evidence of the claims made in the submission. 

*alternative formats may be agreed – please contact the Teaching Excellence team at teaching.learning@manchester.ac.uk in advance of submission if you would like to discuss this.

Statement on the use of Generative AI

Whilst Generative AI tools, such as those related to spelling and grammar, might be appropriately used to support the nominee in developing a Claim, the content must be the nominee’s personal and authentic work.

Senior Supporting Statement

In the case of self-nominations, the Supporting Statement is a significant piece of the submission. The supporting statement should be provided by a senior colleague (e.g. Head of Department/Division) who is in a position to:

  • corroborate the evidence of reach, value and impact made within the nomination
  • help the panel to understand and evaluate the reach, value and impact of the candidate or team’s achievements within their local working context
  • (optional) provide additional evidence of Reach, Value and Impact, or frame the context of the practice in such a way that enhances the evidence for the Claim for excellence.

The Panel may request additional information from the applicant, author of the nominee’s Supporting Statement, and or/Head of School or similar to corroborate statements made in the claim e.g. as to impact and the nominee’s context. 

Submitting your nomination

Nominations should be presented on the Teaching Excellence Case for Award proforma, including all necessary signatures and/or statement of support as required, and uploaded via the online submission portal. 

Deadline for nominations: 19:00 BST on Monday 08 June 2026 

If you have any questions please contact the Teaching Excellence team at teaching.learning@manchester.ac.uk 

 

The core criteria

The core criteria against which applications will be evaluated are:

Sustained excellence

 

The underpinning principles of the Teaching Excellence Awards include a commitment to teaching and supporting learning. Evidence of outstanding contribution to teaching and learning should therefore extend over at least the preceding 2-3 years.

Strategic alignment

 

 

Nominations should be framed within the University’s context and priorities for teaching, learning and the student experience as set out in Manchester 2035 and the Mcr 2035 Delivery Handbook. Alignment with other plans may also be relevant, e.g. the Access and Participation Plan, Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) etc.  

An evidence-informed approach

 

 

 

 

Nominations should demonstrate intellectual engagement with teaching and learning. This should involve evidence of the use scholarship, or research, or professional learning, or other evidence-informed approaches as a basis for effective practice.

Nominations do not require a record of teaching publication, but where this exists it can be taken into account along with impact on teaching, learning and the student experience more broadly.

Evidence of effectiveness

Evidence backing up the case for Reach, Value and Impact — commensurate with the individual's context and opportunities — should be cited throughout. The quality, extent and relevance of evidence is a critical factor in enabling the panel to evaluate the nomination, as outlined below:

Reach

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The scale or target of influence. For example, this would normally be expected to include evidence of reach beyond your immediate context – across departmental, faculty, institutional or national levels.  Reach also includes

  • evidence of reaching different groups of staff and/or students (e.g. commuter students, online learners, students from minoritised groups, students living with a disability etc.) 
  • evidence of effective collaboration with other organisations (professional bodies, employers, other HEIs, cultural institutions, private businesses, public bodies, charities etc.) to enhance the quality of teaching and learning

Value

 

 

 

 

 

 

The benefit derived for students and/or staff. Why was the intervention required and how did you know?

Evidence of Value is likely to include qualitative evidence, for example feedback or survey data on how the work described has positively changed the student learning experience or colleagues’ teaching practice.

Value may also relate to the quality of enhanced experiences and/or the meaningfulness of practices. Some nominees may also be working in settings where there are explicit positive ethical elements to their practice.

Winning other awards, successful bids for financial support, alignment with strategic agenda may also be evidence of value. 

Impact 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evidence of positive change taking place in policy, practice and/or student outcomes as a result of the activity. This is likely to be quantitative, and best evidenced when change can be demonstrated longitudinally, e.g. a rise in Unit Survey score from 2.9 to 3.7 to 4.6 over time or a positive impact on NSS data; a reduction in awarding gaps between 2022 and 2025; or a new procedure being implemented in 5 programmes across 2 discipline areas over the last 3 years.

Some impact evidence may also be qualitative, for example, a statement from a student or colleague indicating how their understanding or behaviour has changed as a result of the nominee’s practice.

Plus (Team Awards only): nominations for a Team Award should consider the following questions and relate them to the core criteria:

  • How do they work together to support student learning?
  • How does their approach influence others?

The evidence and its impact should be corroborated, and put into context, by the Senior Supporting Colleague's statement/nominating signatories.

 

 

Evidence and evaluation

Evidence

The case for award must incorporate evidence to back up the claims made throughout. The evidence should be corroborated, and put into context, by the Senior Supporting Colleague's statement/nominating signatories.

Evidence may include (but is not limited to):

  • A positive change in student attainment data
  • A positive change in student satisfaction (e.g. measured by Unit Survey data/feedback, NSS data/open comments etc.)
  • Positive feedback received through Peer Review of Teaching
  • Positive feedback from External Examiners
  • User data/feedback
  • Testimonials
  • Interview/focus group data, or input from Student Partners
  • Increased engagement rates
  • Specific contributions to enable significant improvements in students' outcomes and / or experience
  • Recognising and actively supporting the full diversity of student learning requirements
  • Organising and presenting high quality resources in accessible, coherent and imaginative ways which clearly enhance learning
  • Awards (e.g. Faculty awards, awards from the Student Union, teaching-related awards from PSRBs)
  • Successful funding applications
  • Commitment to ongoing professional development with regard to teaching and learning and/or learning support
  • Effecting positive change with respect to others' pedagogic practice, and/or a change to relevant policy or procedure
  • Drawing upon the outcomes of relevant research, scholarship and professional practice in ways which add value to teaching and students' learning
  • Dissemination / contribution to pedagogy: a journal article, conference paper, a webinar or workshop delivered by the nominee
  • Dissemination of initiatives to facilitate students' learning (across course units, programmes, disciplines, PSRBs, locally, nationally or internationally)

Evaluation Methods

Guidance on different methods and tools you can use to collect data for your evaluation can be found in the Evaluation Toolkit.

The panel

The panel

The award winners will be decided by a panel of representatives from each Faculty, plus the Head of SAS (or nominee) and co-chaired by Dr James Brooks and Dr Jen McBride, as Academic Theme Leads for Teaching Excellence & Quality. 

Teaching Excellence Award winners

The Teaching Excellence Awards recognize exceptional commitment to teaching and learning at the University of Manchester. Open to academic, technical, and professional service colleagues, these awards highlight the strength and diversity of teaching practices across the institution.

Awardees become Honorary Fellows of the Institute of Teaching and Learning, gaining access to the Fellows Network and opportunities to shape the future of education at the University of Manchester. Many also take part in personal development through national awards pipelines and share their teaching excellence via the University’s Teach, Explore, Apply blog and partnership with Times Higher Education Campus+.

Below you can explore the practice of winners and nominees who have excelled in priority areas in teaching and learning including:

  • Assessment and feedback
  • Educational leadership
  • Flexible learning and digital delivery
  • Inclusive education
  • Student belonging and student voice
  • and the Covid-19 teaching environment.

Teaching Excellence Award winners 2025

Winners (individual awards)

Educational leadership

Winners (team awards)

Educational leadership

Educational leadership and student voice

Highly commended

Commended

Previous Teaching Excellence Award winners (since 2021)

Assessment and feedback

Educational leadership

Flexible learning and digital delivery

Inclusive education

Student belonging and student voice

The Covid-19 teaching environment

Highly Commended (since 2021)

Assessment and feedback

Educational leadership

Flexible learning and digital delivery

Inclusive education

Student belonging and student voice

  • Team Lead: Louisa Shirley, Team Decolonise, School of Health Sciences (2024)
  • David Hirst, The University of Manchester Library (2023)
  • Scott Midson, School of Arts, Languages and Cultures (2023)
  • Oliver Hughes, School of Natural Sciences (2022)
  • Tim Price, School of Arts, Languages and Cultures (2022)
  • Katie Twomey, School of Health Sciences (2022)
  • Team lead: Victoria Tavares, Pharmacy 'Our Values' Group, School of Health Sciences (2022)
  • Team lead: Aurelie Le Normand, Fashion, Business and Textiles (FBT) Graduate Showcase Team, School of Natural Sciences (2022)

The Covid-19 teaching environment

  • Alan Brisdon and Nick Weise, School of Natural Sciences (2021)
  • David Mills, School of Natural Sciences (2021)

Commended (since 2021)

Educational leadership

Flexible learning and digital delivery

  • Team Lead: Wayne Ramwell, The Assessment and Feedback Workshop Series Team, School of Social Sciences (2024)
  • Laura Brown, School of Health Sciences (2022)
  • Andras Voros, School of Social Sciences (2022)
  • Louise Clare, School of Arts, Languages and Cultures (2022)
  • Alexander Gardner-McTaggart, School of Environment, Education and Development (2022)
  • Team lead: Polly Turner, MSc Forensic Psychology and Mental Health team, School of Health Sciences (2022)
  • Team lead: Mike Kennard, Manchester Leadership Programme Development Team, Alliance Manchester Business School (2022)
  • Jenni Rose and Reimala Sivalingam, BSc Accounting Programme Leaders, Alliance Manchester Business School (2022)
  • Sarah Shepherd and Jane Mooney, Digital Wellbeing, School of Medical Sciences (2022)
  • Charlene Gallery and Jo Conlon, Digital Futures Industry Summit 2022, School of Natural Sciences (2022)
  • Team lead: Helen Graham, Skin Ageing and Aesthetic Medicine MSc, PGDip and PG Cert programme team, School of Biological Sciences (2022)
  • Marianne Johnson, School of Natural Sciences (2021)

Inclusive education

  • Naina Kotecha, Michael Fitzpatrick and Giles Bennett, The PGCE Secondary WAPP team, School of Environment, Education & Development) (2024)
  • Francisca Álvarez Figueroa, Alliance Manchester Business School (2023)
  • Team lead: Prof Li-Chia Chen, International Student Experience Programme Team, School of Health Sciences (2023)
  • Alison Harvey, School of Natural Sciences (2022)
  • William Kang, Alliance Manchester Business School (2022)
  • Louise Clare, School of Arts, Languages and Cultures (2022)
  • Lujia Feng, School of Environment, Education and Development (2022)
  • Team lead: Mike Kennard, Manchester Leadership Programme Development Team, Alliance Manchester Business School (2022)

Student belonging and student voice

  • Dr Anne M. Hyland, School of Arts, Languages & Cultures (2024)
  • Abdullatif Alfutimie, School of Engineering (2024)
  • Francisca Álvarez Figueroa, Alliance Manchester Business School (2023)
  • Alison Harvey, School of Natural Sciences (2022)
  • William Kang, Alliance Manchester Business School (2022)
  • Andras Voros, School of Social Sciences (2022)
  • Jenni Rose and Reimala Sivalingam, BSc Accounting Programme Leaders, Alliance Manchester Business School (2022)
  • Team lead: Helen Graham, Skin Ageing and Aesthetic Medicine MSc, PGDip and PG Cert programme team, School of Biological Sciences (2022)

The Covid-19 teaching environment

  • Marianne Johnson, School of Natural Sciences (2021)

Pre-2020 Awards

No nominations were sought in 2020

2019 winners

  • Adam Danquah (Clinical Psychology) (2019)
  • Jenny Slaughter (Chemistry) (2019)

2018 winners

  • Harish Thampy (Medical Sciences) (2018)
  • Hannah Cobb (Archaeology) (2018)
  • Sam Aston (My Learning Essentials) (2018)
  • Stefan Guettel (Mathematics) (2018)

2017 winners

  • David Schultz (Earth and Environmental Sciences) (2017)
  • Rebecca Farrington (Medical Sciences) (2017)
  • Claire Fox (Criminology) (2017)

Contact and Expression of Interest

Please use this form to register your interest in participating in the next cycle of the Teaching Excellence Awards: The Teaching Excellence Awards Expression of Interest Form

For further information or specific enquiries, please contact Emma Sanders. 

Email teaching.learning@manchester.ac.uk