University celebrates five shortlisting places in Educate North Awards

The ENAs are the North’s most esteemed Education awards highlighting world class achievements across the University, Higher Education, Further Education and Sixth Form sectors in the North of England. 

The University has been named a finalist in the categories of: 

• Law School of the Year - School of Law and Social Justice — Embedding employability in the Law Curriculum – joined-up thinking and action 

• Community Engagement Award – University Sector - Chester Community Law Project 

• Apprenticeship Award - The Apprenticeship Team 

• Student Experience Award – University Sector - Academic Skills Team, The Skills Pod 

• Business Engagement, Employer Award – University Sector - Enterprise DNA (Diversity, Networks, Action) 

• The University’s School of Law and Social Justice has been shortlisted in two categories - the Community Engagement Award - University Sector and the Law School of the Year Award. 

The Chester Community Law Project (CCLP) was shortlisted for the Community Engagement Award for the impact this student-run community engagement initiative operated by Chester Law School, has had on some of our most vulnerable local communities. This shortlisting comes hot on the heels of CCLP being shortlisted for the equally prestigious LexisNexis Legal Awards.

The team at the School of Law and Social Justice has also been recognised for embedding employability in the Law curriculum and its joined-up thinking and action. Embedding employability within the curriculum is a significant challenge for undergraduate law schools but including elements of the CCLP addresses this challenge head-on. In 2024, alongside other experiential activities, aspects of CCLP were integrated into the School’s law curriculum to enhance employability opportunities for underrepresented students, improve retention and prepare students for legal careers.

This initiative benefits students, the university, the regional legal sector, broader economy and civic society. 

• The University’s Apprenticeship team has made the finalists in the Apprenticeship Award. The University reviewed and invested in the apprenticeship department in 2022, developed a robust quality monitoring programme, a holistic approach to apprenticeship delivery and support, aiming to improve the experience for the apprentices and the employers and supporting the regional skills development. 

Through a series of interventions and challenges, the University has had external regulatory body recognition of the distance travelled, the improved achievement of the apprentices and the quality of education they receive. The impact of which has been seen by the apprentices and employers and from the University’s Policing, Nursing and Social Work apprentices, from the communities they serve. 

• The Academic Skills (ASk) team has been shortlisted in the category of the Student Experience Award – University for its work with The Skills Pod. This frank and funny podcast features conversations between ASk team members, lecturers and students, focusing on essential skills for academic success. Over 40 episodes have been published so far, with topics including Referencing, Paraphrasing, Imposter Syndrome and Literature Reviews. The Skills Pod has been downloaded over 12,000 times, in more than 115 countries, across six continents.   
• The Enterprise DNA (Diversity, Networks, Action) project has made the finals of the Business Engagement, Employer Award – University Sector based on the impact this work has had on the local business community. As an innovative institution, Chester continues to evolve and adapt in response to business needs and community challenges as local, regional and national economies require appropriate holistic solutions that involve continuous adaptation and diverse stakeholder engagement. The interaction of people, communities and organisations with the planet has never been more important. The University has used ‘Enterprise DNA’ as a mechanism for progress, evident through its business engagement work: building meaningful relationships with purpose-led organisations; piloting new engagement formats; and closer links between key employers, students and communities. 

The winners of the awards will be announced at a ceremony on Thursday, April 3 2025. 

Professor Eunice Simmons, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Chester, said: “I am so pleased to see the hard work of so many colleagues across a range of disciplines at the University recognised with this shortlisting and wish them all the very best of luck in the awards.” 

Caption: Law students Megan Arnold (left) and Chloe Lewis who work on the CCLP project.