24 winners, from robots to music apps, celebrate success at the 2022 Bett Awards
A robot that can play football, an app that connects budding musicians with real-life professional instructors for a fraction of the normal price of lessons and a tool that can help schools pinpoint £100 million in free school meal funding are just some of the innovations that won at last night’s Bett Awards.
Hundreds of submissions were whittled down to a few dozen finalists before 24 winners were unveiled at the 24thannual Bett Awards at a gala dinner last night.
The awards are designed to celebrate the inspiring creativity and innovation that can be found throughout technology for education.
Covid-19 has sparked unprecedented need for EdTech with hundreds of entrepreneurs and established tech firms springing into action to meet the need.
The winner of the coveted Innovator of the Year award is Practice Pal – which gives children premium music lessons with professional musicians for just £7.99 a week – less than half the cost of a normal half hour lesson.
Marty the Robot, a walking, dancing, football-playing robot that helps introduce children to the world of coding and robotics, won the Hardware, Digital and Robotic award.
The fast-growing LGfl was crowned the winner of the Technical and IT Support service after making its free schools meals eligibility checker free. The tool helps schools track down the up to £100 million in pupil premium funding that they could be missing out on.
The company also scooped the Digital Wellbeing award with its tool, built in partnership with the Department for Education, that helps students identify extremism online.
Two of the winners had tools that help prepare children to thrive online whilst keeping them safe: Natterhub won the Transformational Impact award while Southwest Grid for Learning – 360 Early Years – won the Early Years, Digital Product or Service award.
Maths Circle – creators of primary school favourite Times Table Rock Stars and NumbBots – scooped the Company of the Year prize for firms under £3 million while Renaissance Learning, which helped year six pupils in Hertfordshire undergo assessments, to close the learning gaps in challenging circumstances, won the accolade of Company of the Year in the over £3 million category.
A team of 28 judges were tasked with selecting the winners from hundreds of entries.
Julia Garvey, Deputy Director General, British Educational Suppliers Association and Chair of Judges for the Bett Awards said:
“The Bett Awards always attract top calibre submissions and this year was no exception. The winners are all amazing and the standard was incredibly high – the hardest job we had was narrowing it down to pick a winner each time. We are delighted to be able to recognise the hard work of so many businesses in the EdTech space all of whom have gone above and beyond to support teachers and learners during these uncertain times. We can’t wait to welcome everyone back to the Bett Show at ExCeL over the coming days where visitors will be able to see many of the shortlisted and winning entries on display. “
Eve Harper, Portfolio Director, UK EdTech – Hyve, said:
“The Bett Awards are a highlight of the three-day Bett show but this year we have really seen innovation flourish like never before. The pandemic has fuelled a wave of new inventions from small start-ups to big tech firms who pivoted to meet the need for new ways of delivering education. Long after the pandemic has subsided, these new tools will have changed the way we learn forever.”
Many of the winners and finalists will be showcased at Bett until the 25 March 2022 at ExCeL, London.
To register for a free ticket to see the winners and hundreds of other EdTech solutions at Bett go to www.bettshow.com
For a list of all the finalists, please see:
The full list of the Bett Award 2022 winners is below:
| Category 2022 | Winner |
| Collaboration with a School | Joskos Solutions with Pheasey Park Farm Primary School and Early Years Centre |
| Innovator of the Year | Practice Pal |
| Transformational Impact | Natterhub |
| Company of the Year (less than £3m) | Maths Circle |
| Company of the Year (more than £3m) | Renaissance |
| Educational Resource for Parents or Home Learning | Your Favourite Teacher |
| Early Years – Digital Product or Service | South West Grid for Learning -360 Early Years |
| Class Aid or Educator Support | Developing Experts – Science Curriculum |
| Primary – Digital Learning Product – Language & Literacy | Kaligo |
| Primary – Digital Learning Product – Numeracy & Maths | Learning by Questions |
| Primary – Free Digital Content, App or Open Educational Resource | White Rose Maths – Primary Resources |
| Primary – Digital Learning Product – Broad Curriculum (other) | Busythings |
| Secondary – Digital Learning Product | Texthelp – EquatIO |
| Secondary – Free Digital Content, App or Open Educational Resource | Mathigon – Polypad |
| Assessment, Planning & Progress Monitoring | Learning Ladders |
| Technical or IT Support Service | LGfL – The National Grid for Learning |
| International Digital Educational Resource | Mussila Music School |
| Hardware, AV, VR/AR, Robotics or Digital Device | Robotical – Marty the Robot |
| Leadership & Management Solutions | Guide Education – Guide Teacher Training Guide Connect |
| Wellbeing, Digital Wellness & Safeguarding Resources | LGfL – Going Too Far? Extremism and the Law |
| SEND Resources, Products & Services | Pearson – Mable Therapy |
| Higher Education – Digital Learning Product | Lean Library Futures |
| The Education Show (non-EdTech) Award for School Resources & Equipment for Teaching & Learning | The Literacy Tree – The Literary Curriculum |
| Outstanding Achievement Award | John and Ann Crick, Founders, Crick Software |
| Category 2022 – Highly Commended | Highly Commended |
| Class Aid or Educator Support | Findel Education – Electronic Phonics |
| Secondary – Free Digital Content, App or Open Educational Resource | Craig’n’Dave YouTube Channel |
| Leadership & Management Solutions | CPOMS Systems |
| SEND Resources, Products & Services | JellyJames Publishing (Dynamo Maths) – Puffin Maths |
Sector Response
Matt Koster-Marcon, founding CEO of Learning Ladders, winner of the award for best “Assessment, Planning & Progress Monitoring” tool, commented:
“Everyone at Learning Ladders is so proud to win this BETT Award – our second win in three years feels amazing! The BETT Awards are the Oscars of the education world, recognised globally as a benchmark of excellence. Learning Ladders is revolutionising how schools improve progress by automating parental involvement at scale, using school’s live assessment data, and to be recognised in this way gives us a huge boost. A massive thank you to everyone – we’ll be back next year even better!”
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