Academy named among top 10 schools in the world for overcoming adversity
By Jill Dando News
Students and staff at Venturers' Academy are overjoyed after their school was named one of the top ten schools in the world for overcoming diversity.
The World’s Best School Prizes 2024 is a global competition that was founded by T4 Education in collaboration with Accenture, American Express, and the Lemann Foundation, to provide a platform for the world’s most prestigious education awards.
Having entered Venturers' Academy into the Overcoming Adversity category, the school community learned in a special assembly that they had made it into the top ten.
Students, staff, parents, carers, governors, sponsors and special guests had gathered together in the school hall to celebrate Diversity Day, which included a high energy dance performance by Clevedon School Dance Team, when the Executive Head, Trystan Williams, revealed the exciting news.
The students and staff were absolutely over the moon, with celebrations continuing throughout the day.
Venturers’ Academy, which is part of Venturers’ Trust, is among five UK schools across five categories to be shortlisted for this year’s Prizes – the highest number of any country globally alongside India.
The winners of the five Prizes will be chosen by an expert Judging Academy based on rigorous criteria. The winner of a special Community Choice Award will be determined by a public vote, so please support Venturers’ Academy by voting here.
Trystan Williams said:
“Our school community is absolutely brimming with pride and excitement at the incredible achievement of being named one of the world’s top ten schools in the world, in the category Overcoming Adversity.
"This really is a massive achievement for a school in South Bristol that champions children whose unique strengths, talents and abilities might otherwise be overlooked. This accolade says so much about our amazing pupils and staff, as well as our wonderfully supportive parents and carers, governors, sponsors and the wider community who are so supportive of our determination to create life changing opportunities for each and every one of our brilliant students.”
Mr Williams continued:
“The platform this competition provides is all about impact and scale, and working with like-minded schools from all over the world to share best practice and collaborate together. Already we’ve been taking part in the most inspiring conversations with schools from all over the world, sparking ambitious ideas of how we can transform the lives of even more young people who face adversity in their lives for a variety of different reasons. The demand for special school provision significantly outstrips the number of places available, but the international recognition of the work we do at Venturers’ Academy, will help us to deliver bright futures for even more children.”
Vikas Pota, Founder of T4 Education and the World’s Best School Prizes, said:
“Unless we solve the urgent challenges global education faces – from learning gaps exacerbated by Covid to chronic underfunding and the growing teacher wellbeing, recruitment and retention crisis – we will have failed the next generation.
“Trailblazing Bristol schools like Venturers' Academy, which have cultivated a strong culture and aren’t afraid to innovate, show the difference that can be made to so many lives.”
The top three finalists for each of the five World’s Best School Prizes will be announced in September 2024 followed by the winners in November.
The winner of each Prize will be chosen based on rigorous criteria by a Judging Academy comprising distinguished leaders across the globe including academics, educators, NGOs, social entrepreneurs, government, civil society, and the private sector.
The five World’s Best School Prizes - for Community Collaboration, Environmental Action, Innovation, Overcoming Adversity, and Supporting Healthy Lives – were established in the wake of Covid in 2022 to give a platform to schools that are changing lives in their classrooms and far beyond their walls, sharing their best practices to help improve education everywhere.
