Woodlands Meed were delighted to be shortlisted as a finalist for the Acumen People Awards and were invited to attend the awards ceremony held at The Old Ship Hotel in Brighton on Friday evening.

The Acumen People Awards set out to recognise and showcase 7 – 17 year olds within the local community who have gone above and beyond and had a positive impact on the lives around them and the School of the Year Award recognises a school that has demonstrated excellence in academics, extracurricular, and/or community involvement.

Other awards included, Fundraiser of the Year, Bravery Award, Best Friend of the Year, Sibling of the Year, Young Carer Award and Sporting Achievement Award.

Our College House Captains, Luke, Tara and Jess attended the Awards to represent Woodlands Meed, along with Deputy Head Teacher Nola Bennett and Fundraiser Anna Hull. The students represented Woodlands Meed brilliantly and we all enjoyed a fantastic evening.

The students particularly enjoyed hearing from Penina Shepherd, Acumen’s CEO and founder, who gave a heartening and motivating and talk about why she decided to set up Acumen. She shared how facing fear and not being afraid to try new things and think differently, helped her achieve her goals. Penina’s talk and seeing and hearing about the other nominees and winners was inspirational and very moving and we all felt in awe of the remarkable people we met and the amazing things that go on in our community.