Winners of the National Arts and Cultural Education Awards 2026
The awards put best practice in the field of arts and cultural learning firmly in the spotlight, wherever it is happening across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
The Awards celebrate the incredible people and organisations throwing open doors to the very best in arts and cultural education. From teachers and artists to youth workers, health specialists and community volunteers, we honour those helping children and young people discover the power of arts and culture.
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231 Award Nominations
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10 Award Categories
The quality of the entries was extremely high, as always, making the process of reviewing and scoring them no easy task for our independent judging panels. Congratulations to all nominees, runners-up, and winners!
Celebrating the 2026 finalists and winners
The Innovators in Engagement Award
- Common/Wealth
- Concrete Youth
- National Youth Theatre
- OmniMusic
- Royal Scottish National Orchestra
- Turner Sims, University of Southampton
- West of England Music and Arts
- Zest
Winner: Stacked Wonky
Stacked Wonky creates site-specific practice, particularly within dance. The work they do is woven into the everyday lives of young people in their community.
They partner with a wide array of national organisations who commission, programme and enlist their young people to share practice and showcase professional work created by young artists.
The Inspirational Local Partnership Award
- Building Young Brixton
- Durham University; Blackhall Community Centre; Auckland Youth and Community Centre; Teesdale Community Resource (TCR) Hub
- M6 Theatre and Barnardo’s
- MADE - Manchester's Cultural Education Partnership
- Project Parr
- Signal Festival
- Unseen Arts Grimsby C.I.C. and The Culture House
Winner: Salford CEP
Salford CEP brings together schools, cultural organisations, local authority teams, artists, youth services and community groups from across Salford. Together, they ensure every child and young person in Salford can access high-quality arts, culture and creative opportunities, whatever their background, postcode or circumstance. Creative inclusion and cultural entitlement at the core.
The One to Watch Award
- Annabelle Lee
- Ayman Juwairiyyah Sabir
- Ella Dufton
- Liberty Griffin
- Samridhi Saini
- Tessa Chalmers
Winner: Sarah Wilson
At Kirklees Museum, Sarah Wilson led the Kirklees Cultural Curriculum, co-producing 14 schemes of work, digital resources and 20 object loan boxes that bring hands-on creativity into learning within local communities. Through the National Saturday Club partnership with the University of Huddersfield, Sarah opens up high-quality arts and culture to young people beyond the classroom.
The Spark The Change Award
Supported by Flowehesion
- 20 Stories High
- Bradford Culture Company
- Byrchall High School
- Concerteenies
- International Slavery Museum
- Rambert in partnership with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and NHS Greater Manchester
- Turtle Key Arts
- Unseen Arts Grimsby C.I.C. in partnership with CreateNEL and Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre
Winner: Breaking Barriers Rochdale
Breaking Barriers is a Rochdale-based, multi-disciplinary production company that creates films, theatrical productions, binaural audio pieces and outdoor walking tours with local communities and international artists.
Their Crossing the Line programme used a theatre monologue as a social change tool, to show the reality of child criminal exploitation to more than 14,300 young people in over 220 schools.
The Young Arts Activism Award
- Authoring Our Own Stories by Partnership for Young London, working in conjunction with Youth Focus North West, Youth Focus South West, and Yorkshire and Humber Regional Youth Work Unit
- Creative Fusion and Blackpool LCEP
- The Day One Project by Youth Voice and Influence Service (Community Youth Services at Sheffield City Council)
- The Escape2Make Youth Board
- The National Youth Advisory Board (NYAB) at Chichester Festival Theatre
- Youth Eco Fashion Group at 20–21 Visual Arts Centre
Winner: Spark’s (Wakefield LCEP) Youth Arts Ambassadors’ Black to Green project, supported by the National Coal Mining Museum England and Yew Tree Arts
Spark’s Youth Arts Ambassadors are a group of more than 20 young people aged 14 to 24, working with artistic and cultural organisations to make change in their community.
In the Black to Green project, supported by the National Coal Mining Museum England and Yew Tree Arts, they curated Roots and Renewal, an exhibition inspired by the museum’s reed bed water mine water treatment system.
The Fearless Freelancer Award
- Hannah Desai
- Jamie-Lee Wainman
- Jenny Baldwin
- Jodie Smith
- Naseem Darbey
- Ndidi Nkwopara
- Sarah Gough
Winner: Rebecca Hulbert
Having spent 25 years as a theatre freelancer, Rebecca Hulbert began her career with acting training at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. As a Makaton Tutor, Rebecca weaves signs into the core of her theatre shows, digital work and workshops.
Seeing the lack of inclusive offers for children, she founded Arthur’s Club to make sure no child was left behind, and all children could enjoy a creative offer side by side.
The Mighty Roots Award
- dot-art Services CIC
- Neuroverse Community CIC
- Toddington Town Development Band
- Tracing Steps Theatre & Dance Company
- We Make Culture
Winner: Unseen Arts Grimsby C.I.C.
Unseen Arts is a small, independent arts centre in Grimsby, founded and led by local artists. Unseen Arts exists to make high-quality creative experiences genuinely accessible to everyone in the community, with a particular focus on children, young people and families. Identifying need is built in; the work is created from understanding what is missing for local young people.
The Power in Practice Award
- Battersea Arts Centre
- National Saturday Club (The Saturday Club Trust)
- North East Museums
- Royal Ballet and Opera
- The Lowry
Winner: Roundhouse
Roundhouse is the UK’s leading creative centre for young people aged 11 to 30. Over the last year, they worked with over 12,000 young people, across 200 industry-led creative projects, in 26 studios and a dedicated freelancer coworking space.
The work focuses on participation, belonging, empowerment, and trusted relationships so young people feel safe, thrive, and have their voices heard.
The Arts Leadership in Education Award
Presented in memory of Jude Bird.
- Byrchall High School
- Castlebrae Community Campus
- Furness Sixth Form College
- LET Education Trust
- Wistaston Academy
Winner: Stapleford Community Primary School
Stapleford Community Primary School has built a pioneering partnership with their local arts centre, Stapleford Granary. Shaped by careful observation and evaluation, they have deepened their understanding as cultural educators and expanded the opportunities available.
For pupils, the partnership has meant far more than a programme of cultural visits, it has transformed engagement, confidence and wellbeing.
The Changemaker Award
Presented in memory of Paul Collard.
The recipient of the Changemaker Award is chosen jointly by the CEO and Chair of Curious Minds.
It recognises an individual whose work, over many years, has made a significant positive change to the field of arts and culture by, with, and for children and young people.
