Categories
Are you doing something new, something bold or something different? If so, the following categories will allow you to showcase your endeavours and successes. You don't necessarily need to be doing something groundbreaking; instead it may be new to you, new to the sector or a new way of tackling an age-old problem.
The judges will use the following category specific criteria to judge these categories, so please ensure you cover all questions within your entry.
Best Charity Film
Awarded to a charity and/or agency that has produced the most inspiring awareness raising or fundraising film of the year. The film should be no more than five minutes in length.
Examples could include direct response TV ads or online supporter engagement campaigns.
- Aims: Describe the brief. What is the aim of the film? What is the film asking of viewers - awareness, engagement or perhaps donations. (250 words max)
- Approach: What approach was taken to tell the story? Why was film selected as the medium for this campaign? What challenges did you face producing this? Where did the film run and why was that selected? Please include the budget for the film. (250 words max)
- Achievements: How effective was the film? How did you measure success? What impact did the film have? (250 words max)
Please upload the full version of the film to YouTube or Vimeo and provide the link as part of your submission.
Past Winners:
Best Use of Social Media - NEW
Awarded to a charity or charity organisation that creatively used social media to tell a story about its work, raise awareness of a campaign, or even combat negative attention. The judges will be looking for imaginative use of content that sets the organisation apart from the rest.
- Aims: What are the goals of the charity/organisation? How did it set out to achieve these? (200 word max)
- Approach: What approach did it take and how was it delivered? Who was involved in the delivery? Include any challenges that were faced. (250 word max)
- Achievements: How effective has it been, and what was the return on investment? (250 word max)
- Optional case study can be provided.
Big Impact Award
Awarded to a project that has had a substantial impact on national or international life.
- Aims: What was the aim of the project and when did it begin? (200 words max)
- Approach: What approach did it take and how was it funded? What challenges did the project have to overcome? (250 word max)
- Achievements: How effective was the project? Please include details on how success was measured. (250 words max)
Past Winners:
Brand Development
For the best new, changed or evolved brand. This can range from a totally new identity, the merging of two or more organisations, logo changes or an on-going evolution of an existing brand.
- Aims: When and why did the organisation decide to refresh its brand? (200 words max)
- Approach: Who was responsible for designing the new brand (i.e. was it designed in-house or by an agency)? What was the budget for the new brand? How did the process work? For example, did the charity undertake research or engage services users in the rebrand process? What challenges did the charity face? (250 words max)
- Achievements: What difference has the brand change made to the charity? For example, has it helped improve brand awareness, attract more service users or increase fundraising? (250 words max)
Please include before and after examples of the branding.
Past Winners:
Breakthrough of the Year
This award is an opportunity to showcase something new or different. Areas could include supporter and/or donor engagement, extending the reach of the charity or introducing a new way of working.
- Aims: What was the project and its objectives? (200 words max)
- Approach: What approach did it take? How was it delivered? Include any challenges you faced. (250 words max)
- Achievements: How effective was it? Include details on how success was measured. (250 words max)
Past Winners:
Charity of the Year
This prestigious award will go to the charity or voluntary sector organisation that has had a truly exceptional year and whose recent achievements have attracted the admiration of the sector. Please explain in no more than 1,000 words why you believe the organisation should win the award.
Please address the following questions in your entry.
- Charity overview: How many people does the charity employ? When was it founded and who does it support?
- What are the charity's objectives? How does it achieve its goals?
- What has the charity achieved over the past year? What challenges has it faced and how did it overcome them? What impact has the charity had on its beneficiaries or the wider sector in the past year?
- How has the charity evaluated its success?
Please note, long-listed entrants for this category will be invited to present at the live judging day on w/c 7 September as part of the judging process.
Past Winners:
Communications Agency of the Year
Awarded to an agency that has helped to create a highly successful communications campaign for its client, or provided an exceptional level of support and advice.
- Aims: What was the name of the client you assisted and what did you hope to achieve? (200 words max)
- Approach: What campaign did you run and what techniques did you use? (250 words max)
- Achievements: How successful was the work? (250 words max)
Past Winners:
Communications Campaign of the Year
Awarded to a charity for a highly successful, innovative or inspiring communications campaign.
- Aims: What were the goals of the campaign and why was it needed? (150 words max)
- Approach: Who was responsible for devising the campaign concept (i.e. was it an agency or devised in-house)? What approach did the campaign take and how was it promoted? Please Include any challenges you faced. (250 words max)
- Achievements: How effective was it and what impact did it have? (250 words max)
Optional case study can be provided. Entries are also welcome from agencies on behalf of charities.
Past Winners:
Covid-19: Best Service Delivery Innovation - NEW
Awarded to a charity that delivered a unique and effective service innovation in the face of social distancing rules and increased pandemic demand.
- Aims: What is the charity service, and how did the pandemic impact its delivery? (200 word max)
- Approach: How did the charity innovate and adapt the service? What were the key challenges to consider? How did the organisation put the adapted service into practice? (250 word max)
- What did the adapted service achieve? How did you measure its success? How did the adaption impact beneficiaries? (250 word max)
Digital Innovation of the Year
Awarded to a charity or social enterprise that is pushing the boundaries of digital technology to reach supporters, donors, or beneficiaries.
- Aims: What was the project and its objectives? (200 words max)
- Approach: What approach did it take? How was it delivered? Please include any challenges you faced. (250 words max)
- Achievements: How effective was it? (250 words max)
Optional web link
Past Winners:
Enterprise Award
Awarded to a social enterprise or charity that has significantly improved its income from its commercial activities in recent years. Examples might include through the use of charity shops, the sale of products or services, or renting out office space or land.
- Aims: What are the goals of the charity/organisation? How did it set out to achieve these through its commercial activities? (200 words max)
- Approach: What types of commercial activities did it undertake? Include any challenges that were faced. (250 words max)
- Achievements: How successful has it been and how has the money been used to support beneficiaries? (250 words max)
Past Winners:
Fundraising Campaign
Awarded to an innovative fundraising campaign that achieved or exceeded its target.
- Aims: What was the campaign and what was its objectives? (200 words max)
- Approach: What approach did it take and how was it delivered? Who was involved in the delivery the campaign (ie. was it managed in-house or by an agency)? How much was spent on the campaign? (250 words max)
- Achievements: How effective was the campaign and what was the return on investment? (250 words max)
Past Winners:
Marketing Campaign of the Year
Awarded to the best charity marketing campaign of the year. Examples might include the successful marketing of an organisation’s products, services or membership programmes, or the use of affinity marketing.
- Aims: What was the campaign and its objectives? (200 words max)
- Approach: What approach did it take and how was it delivered? Who was involved in producing the campaign and what challenges did the charity face? (250 words max)
- Achievements: How effective was the campaign? (200 words max)
Past Winners:
Small Charity, Big Achiever
Awarded to an organisation with an income of less than £500,000 a year that has made a significant impact with its work.
- Aims: What are the goals of the charity/organisation? What did it set out to achieve? (200 words max)
- Approach: How did it achieve these goals? Include any challenges that were faced. (250 words max)
- Achievements: How successful has it been? Please include details on how success was measured. (250 words max)
Past Winners:
The following awards are an opportunity for organisations to demonstrate how they have worked with others in the sector or built partnerships or relationships with local or national businesses.
The judges will use the following category specific criteria to judge these categories, so please ensure you cover all questions within your entry.
Charity Partnership of the Year
Awarded to a partnership between two or more charities that has enabled the partners to more effectively deliver services to beneficiaries, reach new groups or reduce costs. This could also be a partnership between a charity and a social enterprise, or a not-for-profit campaigning group.
- Aims: What were the goals of the partnership, and when and why was it established? (200 words max)
- Approach: How did the partnership achieve these goals? What resources did the partners put in and what challenges did they face? (250 words max)
- Achievements: How successful has the partnership been? Please include details on how success was measured. (250 words max)
Past Winners:
Corporate Partnership of the Year
Awarded to a partnership between a charity, social enterprise or other kind of voluntary organisation and a business that has brought strong mutual benefits to both.
Organisations that have previously entered Third Sector’s Business Charity Awards are still eligible to enter, but the entry must be from the charities’ perspective and not the corporate partner.
- Aims: What are the goals of the partnership, and when and why did it begin? (200 words max)
- Approach: What resources did the company put into the partnership, and how did it work alongside the charity? (250 words max)
- Achievements: What benefits has the partnership brought for both the charity and the company? (250 words max)
Past Winners:
These awards aim to recognise the talent that drives the sector forward. So if you are an organisation that has great employees, teams or individuals that are making a real contribution to your cause, be that as a paid employee or a volunteer, then the following are where you should be showcasing and celebrating this talent.
Please explain in no more than 700 words (which includes your 200 word executive summary), why you believe the person or team should win an award in the following categories.
Celebrity Charity Champion
Awarded to a celebrity who has shown genuine and productive support for his or her chosen charity or charities.
When was the relationship established and why?
- Is there a clear link between the celebrity and the charities cause?
- What role has the celebrity played in supporting the charity’s work? How much time have they given compared to funds and/or awareness raised?
- What impact has the celebrity had on the charity? How has their support helped the charity (i.e. increased income, raised awareness etc)?
Please note the entry should cover the impact the celebrity has had over the past twelve months. Any support prior to this should be briefly mentioned and can be detailed further in support material.
Past Winners:
Charity Chair of the Year
Awarded to the chair of trustees who has made an outstanding contribution to the charity over the past year.
When did he or she join the board and when did they become chair?
- When did he or she join the board and when did they become chair?
- What have they achieved? What impact does their efforts have on the organisation?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Past Winners:
Charity Chief Executive
Awarded to the chief executive who has made an outstanding contribution to his or her organisation, or the wider sector over the past year.
When did he or she join the charity, and when did they become chief executive?
- When did he or she join the charity, and when did they become chief executive?
- What have they achieved? What impact does their efforts have on the organisation?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Past Winners:
Communications Team of the Year
Awarded to the communications team that has worked effectively together to raise awareness of a particular campaign or the charity’s overall work.
- Who is in the team? What are their roles and objectives?
- How do they achieve their goals? What challenges have they faced?
- What have they achieved?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Please note, long-listed entrants for this category will be invited to present at the live judging day on w/c 7 September as part of the judging process.
Past Winners:
Covid-19: Frontline Team of The Year - NEW
Awarded to a team working on the front line of a charity cause area that has delivered an exceptional service and gone the extra mile to support beneficiaries through the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Who is in the team? What are their roles and objectives?
- How did the pandemic impact their work, and what steps did the team take to overcome these challenges?
- What have they achieved?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Digital Champion of The Year - NEW
Awarded to an individual who has done the most to help a charity, or multiple charities, to improve their digital offering. Entrants could be working directly for a charity or for an external agency/supplier. We want to hear from individuals who are leading the way and pushing boundaries, using smart technology in new and innovative ways to engage the public with charities and re-imagine the world. Personal or colleague nominations welcome from agencies, brands or tech partners.
- When did the individual join the organisation
- What have they achieved
- Why do they deserve to win?
Finance Team of the Year
Awarded to the finance team that has displayed exceptional financial leadership by, for example, improving the charity's financial performance or by helping it to overcome significiant challenges.
- Who is on the team?
- What were their goals and how do they achieve them? What challenges did they face?
- What did they achieve?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Past Winners:
Fundraising Team of the Year
Awarded to a fundraising team that has worked effectively together to achieve or exceed its fundraising targets.
- Who is on the team?
- What were their goals and how do they achieve them?
- What challenges do they face?
- How much money have they raised and what was the return on investment?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Please note, long-listed entrants for this category will be invited to present at the live judging day on w/c 7 September as part of the judging process.
Past Winners:
Rising Chief Executive
Awarded to the chief executive who has made an outstanding contribution to his or her organisation, or the wider sector, during their first two years in post.
- When did he or she join the charity, and when did they become chief executive?
- What have they achieved?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Past Winners:
Rising Star
This award honours the emerging new talents. We are looking for people who have demonstrated exceptional skill and ambition and whose personal endeavours have begun to make their mark. We welcome entries from the individuals themselves or nominations from peers, company leaders and clients.
- When did the individual join the organisation, what have they achieved, why do they deserve to win?
Unsung Hero
This award celebrates an individual who makes a difference to the lives of others and not always recognised.
- When did the individual join the organisation, what have they achieved, why do they deserve to win?
Volunteer Team of the Year
Awarded to the volunteer team that has had a significant impact on a charity or good cause over the past year.
- Who is on the team?
- What were their goals and what challenges have they faced?
- What have they achieved?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Past Winners:
Volunteer of the Year
Awarded to the volunteer who has displayed the greatest commitment and achievement to a charity or voluntary sector organisation over the past year.
- When did he or she start to volunteer and why?
- How have they assisted the charity and what have they achieved?
- Why do they deserve to win?
Past Winners:
