The submission deadline is 16 November, 11.59pm GMT. Submissions received after the deadline will not be included.

When you register interest for the awards, you will be able to download nomination packs which have all the information you need to submit your entry via the MAT Excellence Awards 2027 website.

If you have any questions while preparing or submitting your nomination, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

Following the first round of judging, the shortlist for each category will be announced in February 2027. Winners will be announced at the MAT Excellence Awards dinner, taking place at the ILEC, London on the evening of Thursday 10 June 2027. All shortlisted trusts and companies will be invited to attend. The MAT Excellence in Action conference takes place the same day.

Nomination criteria

The judges will be looking for evidence of excellent practice in the category area, and are instructed as follows:

• Judge the achievement, not the submission. The information should inform the scoring, rather than its presentation.
• Focus objectively on the quality of action, impact/outcomes, evidence and sustainability of the outcomes.
• Independently verifiable data should carry greater weight than an unverified narrative. 
  • For this reason, scoring is weighted towards impact and evidence with 14 of the 21 marks allocated to these areas.

Think carefully about your context, the action you’ve taken and its impact. Use the prompts on the form to guide you (e.g. suggested evidence or examples of impact).

Nomination format

Nominations should be submitted using the nomination form, which is available from a download page. Each form includes specific, category-based questions.

The word count for the submission forms is 850 words. Anything beyond this will be cropped to ensure equal opportunity for all submissions.

Submissions must be accompanied by one piece of supporting evidence from the choices listed on the form.

Judging process

Each category is appointed a judging panel (usually three people). This panel consists of a mixture of executive leaders from trusts and other experts. Each panel is carefully selected to ensure no conflicts of interest.

The judging panel will individually read and score submissions. The panels meet to discuss results and agree the winning entry.

The judges are instructed to base their decisions and scoring solely on the submission, evidence and any accompanying information.  

Confidentiality

Submissions in their entirety are not shared in the public domain. However, please be mindful of including confidential material or identifiable personal data, and avoid this unless necessary to your submission.  

You are asked to provide a summary statement on the nomination form. If your entry is shortlisted, this summary, or an edited version, will be published on the MAT Excellence Awards website. Please ensure therefore that this summary statement does not include any confidential or other information that you do not wish to see in the public domain.

Video permissions

If submitting a video, please check you have permission to share this. Your video should be hosted so that you can provide a url link rather than the full file. Videos may be linked and shared from the MAT Excellence website, so participants should be aware that the video could be used for this purpose.

We wish everyone the best of luck!