Teacher Support Network last night won the Charity Times award for the ‘Best Use of the Web’ at the publication’s prestigious Annual Awards Dinner in London.

Both the nomination and win come as a result of the successes of the charity’s website, which was relaunched in August last year. The new site is full of content and enables visitors to access Teacher Support Network’s key services easily and quickly.

From left: Hannah Essex, Head of Communications & Business Development; Julian Stanley, Chief Executive; Sally Baker, Client Experience Manager; and Andrew Lyons, Digital Media Manager.

As a result of the relaunch, interactions with teachers online increased from 17,056 during the summer term 2008 to 26,719 in the same term in 2009 – an increase of 57 per cent.

Presenting the award was one of the judges Julie Howell, Director of PR and Director of Accessibility for the digital design agency Fortune Cookie. Howell commended on the site’s interactive nature, content and production values as well as the fact that it was produced on a modest budget.

Services available on the site include regularly updated news, useful information and the InfoCentres, which contain over 2,000 factsheets covering a range of issues, from advice on disruptive behaviour to tips on improving a teacher’s CV.

In addition, the site empowers teachers to establish contact with the charity’s professional coaches and counsellors via its Online Support Services.

The site also contains a popular online ‘Stress Test’, links to enable teachers to sign up for Teacher Support Direct, the charity’s weekly newsletter, and other useful information, such as the online Starting out Guide for Newly Qualified and trainee teachers.

The website is constantly improving and expanding. Since the award nomination, another interactive tool has been launched to help teachers look at the balance between a wide range of areas in their lives and help them improve their wellbeing. The ‘Wheel of Wellbeing’ gives teachers the opportunity to reflect on the state of their wellbeing and identify areas of their life they would like to change. Since its launch on the 26 August 2009, it has been used over 580 times.

Teacher Support Network Chief Executive, Julian Stanley, said: “We are thrilled to have won this award from such a highly-regarded publication as Charity Times. This is a fantastic achievement for the charity and a reflection of the hard work and innovative spirit of our team.

“Our online services are a fundamentally important aspect of our work. Interactions via our website now amount to over 90 per cent of the total across our group. We believe it is crucial for us to remain at the forefront of delivery via the internet in order to best serve the magnificent profession of teaching.”