Shropshire Star

Cash for Schools competition: Win a share of £12,000 for your school

It’s back for 2023: the Shropshire Star's Cash for Schools competition.

Published
The Shropshire Star's Cash for Schools competition opens today

This competition, in association with our headline sponsor Enterprise Flex-E-Rent, is open to all Infant, Junior, and Primary schools with Reception to Year 6 pupils within the Shropshire Star circulation area.

How can schools get involved?

Entry stage opens on Wednesday, January 18, 2023 and closes on Friday, February 10, 2023.

For schools to sign up for the Shropshire Star’s Cash for Schools competition an entry form MUST be completed and submitted by the individual school only, with approval from the headteacher or a senior member of the leadership team.

Go to: cashforschools.shropshirestar.co.uk.

All schools who enter will be showcased in a special Cash for Schools supplement that will appear in the Shropshire Star on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, which will signal the start of the token collect campaign.

All parents, children and teachers have to do is collect as many tokens as possible that will appear every day in the Shropshire Star from Wednesday, March 1 to Saturday, March 25, 2023.

£12,000 prize pot breakdown

The great news is that every school has an equal chance of winning. The prizes will be awarded based on the schools that have collected the most tokens per pupil from Reception to Year 6 – so smaller schools have the same chance as larger ones.

For example, a small school with 50 pupils that collects 400 tokens would win when compared to a bigger school with 400 pupils that collects 800 tokens.

Five schools with the most tokens collected per pupil will have the chance to walk away with a cash prize and win a share of the £12,000 prize pot.

The first placed school with the most tokens collected per pupil will scoop a whooping £5,000, followed by £3,000 for second, £2,000 for third and then two £1,000 awards, which will be presented to the fourth and fifth place schools.

What can the cash be spent on?

So, what would the winning schools do with the extra cash?

The possibilities are endless – but it could be that your local school just needs money to buy the basics.

According to a recent study, cash-strapped schools in the UK are struggling to provide basic supplies for their students.

The report found that many schools are having to cut back on things like textbooks, art supplies, and even food. This is putting a lot of stress on both the students and the teachers, who are often forced to spend their own money on classroom supplies.

This situation is particularly troubling given that the UK is already ranked near the bottom of developed countries when it comes to school funding.

Our Cash for Schools competition money could make a huge diff erence to the teachers and pupils at your local school.

It’s entirely up to the individual winning schools what they spend the money on, as long as it makes a diff erence to the pupils within the school.

An information pack will be sent to all participating schools who enter, along with a tool kit and tips on how to encourage parents/guardians, pupils and teachers to get involved with this fantastic campaign.

Meet our sponsor: Enterprise Flex-E-Rent

After the great success of last year’s Cash for Schools campaign, the team at Enterprise Flex-E-Rent are delighted to partner with the Shropshire Star again in 2023.

Having spent time with each of the previous winners, we know how important it is for schools to have access to funding to support the educational and personal needs of their pupils, to provide a foundation for future learning and to develop social skills.

By improving access to technology, sports equipment, books, materials and many learning opportunities, the Cash for Schools prize fund has already made a difference to our five winning schools from 2022, and we look forward to celebrating with the winners of the 2023 competition!

We are proud to be a business with a long-standing commitment to supporting local communities and are excited to be part of this important initiative that will help to ensure positive educational outcomes for the children of Shropshire.

Key dates for your diary

• Entry stage opens today

• Entry stage closes Friday, February 10, 2023

• Confirmation with participating school’s w/c February 13, 2023

• All participating Infant, Primary and Junior schools will appear in the Shropshire Star on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 along with first token

• Daily tokens appear in the Shropshire Star until Saturday, March 25, 2023

• Deadline for tokens to be received by Friday, March 31, 2023

• Winning schools announced w/c April 24, 2023

Prize money

1st prize: £5,000 cash

2nd prize: £3,000 cash

3rd prize: £2,000 cash

4th prize: £1,000 cash

5th prize: £1,000 cash