2025 Fiona Hill Award

Every year, Accounting students have the opportunity to take part in the prestigious Fiona Hill Award. Now in its eleventh year, this unique programme is funded by the Henry Smith Trust, established 400 years ago to support young people in pursuing their career ambitions.

For this year’s award, students were tasked with designing and developing an innovative learning resource to help themselves and others understand some of the more complex aspects of Accounting and Finance, while also improving users’ financial capability. The award places strong emphasis on key employability skills such as effective communication, problem solving and time management, as well as offering students the chance to demonstrate creativity and subject expertise.

This year’s finalists, Annie Xu, Rugwa Makwana, Alina Zalozhnikova, Olivia Hoban, Jacob Casans and AJ Wild (pictured with Mr Ian McKenzie from the Board of Trustees and principal Jo Lain) presented their submissions to a panel of judges, including Mr Ian McKenzie from the Board of Trustees. The students had already completed several preparatory stages and rounds of submission before reaching the final. The standard of entries was exceptional, and the judges deliberated at length before agreeing on the winning project.

Congratulations to all the finalists, and to Alina Zalozhnikova and Olivia Hoban, the 2025 winners of the Fiona Hill Award.