We are delighted to share that Sweet has been selected as a finalist in the Mental Health & Wellbeing Wales Awards, in the Outstanding Impact in Education category.
The awards received over 250 nominations this year, and the organisers describe the standard as exceptionally high — so we are genuinely proud to be on the shortlist. It is the second time Sweet has been recognised at these awards: our Personal Growth and Wellbeing resources won Best Education Product in 2022.
What the award recognises
The Outstanding Impact in Education category recognises the difference made to mental health and wellbeing in educational settings. For us that means the resources behind the Personal Growth and Wellbeing qualification, and the teachers across Wales who deliver it week in, week out — the honest conversations about mental health, social media, relationships and resilience that happen in their classrooms.
The nomination belongs as much to those centres as it does to us.
We have been here before
In 2022, our Personal Growth and Wellbeing resources won Best Education Product at these same awards, presented on World Mental Health Day at the Village Hotel in Cardiff. The award was for the resources Sweet writes and publishes, rather than for the BTEC qualification itself.
What the judges highlighted then is just as important now. They recognised the powerful testimonials from Sweet students and schools, the positive difference the qualification can make to young people’s social and emotional wellbeing, and the way it helps prepare them with the skills and confidence they need for adult life.
Importantly, this evidence came directly from the centres and learners experiencing the impact of the qualification.
Andrew Cooksley, who founded Sweet, said at the time that the feedback from teachers and pupils was what mattered most, and that the award belonged to the team who built the resource.
Sweet was in over 200 centres that year. It is over 250 now.
As we develop our new resources, Sweet is keeping these strengths firmly in mind. Future resources will continue to focus not only on helping learners achieve a qualification, but on supporting wellbeing, building confidence and independence, and developing practical skills that young people can use in their everyday lives and as they move into adulthood.
When we find out
Winners will be announced at the Mental Health & Wellbeing Wales Awards & Conference on Friday 9 October 2026, just ahead of World Mental Health Day. The conference runs from 10:00am to 4:00pm at the Mercure Cardiff Holland House Hotel.
If you are going too, come and say hello.
Who runs the awards
The Mental Health and Wellbeing Wales Awards are organised by The Ajuda Foundation, a community interest company promoting positive mental health among organisations, individuals and communities across Wales. Money raised goes towards reaching communities and organisations that are hardest to reach.