The Auckland Project’s Learning and Skills team shortlisted for national education award.

The Auckland Project’s Learning and Skills Team

The Auckland Project’s Learning and Skills Team has been named a finalist in the prestigious School Travel Awards 2025, recognised in the category of Education / Learning Team of the Year.

Established in 2022, the four-strong team is dedicated to raising aspirations, boosting cultural capital and fostering a sense of pride of place among children and young people in south west Durham and beyond.

The team – Gemma Scott (Learning Manager), Charlotte Foakes (Learning Contracts Manager), Alanna Hatton (Secondary Learning Officer) and Georgia Hendry (Primary and Outdoor Learning Officer) – deliver a wide-ranging programme of immersive, multi-sensory and curriculum-linked workshops. These are offered across The Auckland Project’s unique heritage sites - including Auckland Palace, the Faith Museum, the Mining Art Gallery, the Spanish Gallery and Auckland Palace Deer Park – and through outreach in schools.

Sessions cater for learners aged 3 to 19+, covering 17 curriculum subjects alongside careers and enrichment opportunities. Schools also benefit from teacher support, including ‘teacher surgeries’, where staff work alongside The Auckland Project to adapt sessions to meet the needs of their pupils, including those with special education needs and disabilities (SEND). 

A spokesperson from Cockton Hill Junior School in Bishop Auckland said: “Our whole school has benefited greatly from visits to The Auckland Project. Our Faith Museum visit enriched RE learning by engaging students with stories, practical resources, and artefacts that helped explore different religions.”

In addition to on-site learning, The Auckland Project has developed partnership agreements with schools across County Durham, embedding its educational offer into school life, and providing opportunities such as work experience placements.

In the last financial year, over 11,000 students from across the North East and Yorkshire engaged with The Auckland Project’s educational and cultural initiatives, including Meet the Faiths, an interactive programme introducing students to different religious communities, and Mining Art Workshops which celebrate the region’s rich heritage through the works of Tom McGuinness and Norman Cornish, whose pieces are displayed in The Auckland Project’s Mining Art Gallery.

Gemma Scott, Learning Manager at The Auckland Project, said: “We are thrilled to be recognised as a finalist for such a prestigious award. Our team is passionate about creating unforgettable learning experiences that inspire children and young people, and to see that work celebrated on a national stage is a huge honour.”

The School Travel Awards celebrate the most inspiring organisations and people delivering exceptional learning opportunities beyond the classroom. The Education / Learning Team of the Year award highlights providers who demonstrate outstanding commitment to enriching young people’s education through innovative, curriculum-linked programmes.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony at the five-star Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on Friday 21 November 2025.

The Auckland Project, based in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, is a unique regeneration charity dedicated to building a brighter future for the picturesque market town through art, history, and culture.