Dennis Southwell Award 2026

The Dennis Southwell Award is an annual competition celebrating the positive contributions our students make in the local community. We encourage students who either volunteer, work in the public sector or conduct charity work to enter. Prizes are funded and awarded by Mr Dennis Southwell, long standing former Chair of Governors and now Member of our Providence Learning Trust.

We would like to acknowledge and celebrate all the students who entered this year and allowed us to read their remarkable achievements. We extend our congratulations to the three winners, Edda, Sophie and Jasmine.

We are pleased to share the judges comments on the winners entries:

1st Place: Edda
“Inspiring and heavyweight civic work over 5 years. From securing eco-funding to speaking in the House of Commons and sitting on a Chief Executive selection panel, your leadership as Chair is an absolute credit to youth public service. There is an amazing range of projects that Edda has been involved in. The time she has invested is commendable and demonstrates how kind, caring and passionate about the community she is.”

2nd Place: Sophia
“Commendable hands-on devotion to adult social care. Undertaking professional training to earn her Care Certificate and responding to the emotional complexities of supporting dementia patients shows maturity far beyond her years. She demonstrated real empathy for those she cares for. Sophia is doing some very difficult things at a very young age, helping those most in need in our society. Her ability to reflect on what she has done will serve her very well at the start of her career.”

3rd Place: Jasmine
“Jasmine displayed a lifelong dedication to grassroots volunteering, from her impressive fundraising efforts to her deeply moving work with GEM Arts. It is clear her consistency and personal growth behind her actions, which have made a tangible, lasting difference in her local community”

We are immensely proud of our students at Durham Sixth Form Centre and their contributions to the wider society. We wish them the brightest of futures within their work in the public sector and that all involved continue to make a valuable difference.