Don’t delay, enter today
SAPCA and its members work hard to improve and maintain standards within the sports and play construction industry. Each SAPCA member has committed themselves to following the association’s Codes of Practice, which means that each and every facility project is completed to industry requirements and standards. As a result, all those in the sector – from sports governing bodies and project funders to SAPCA members themselves – view membership of the association as a “badge” that guarantees quality.
To celebrate the quality and excellence of SAPCA members and their work, the association launched the SAPCA Awards in 2015. The awards have grown each year and are recognised throughout the sector.
Now, as the awards approach their 10th anniversary, SAPCA is ramping up their significance and taking them to the next level.
Spreading the message
The SAPCA Awards are a way of showcasing the successes and achievements of SAPCA members to those in the industry. The emphasis has been on recognising facility projects, products and services which show the wide range of innovation, technical excellence and reliability held across the SAPCA membership.
In addition to this, from 2024, we will actively focus our efforts on highlighting the importance of high-quality sports and play construction to those who benefit from it the most – the people and communities who are the end users of the facilities that our members help design and build.
While SAPCA’s core mission is focused on the technical standards and quality of construction projects, we also want to celebrate the positive impact that the facilities created by SAPCA members make in communities across the UK.
As part of this, the SAPCA Awards 2024 will increasingly highlight the social value generated by the facilities our members create.
This is important because, to make the case for increased funding for facilities, we need to show how our projects deliver outcomes in health, education and social cohesion. SAPCA members already know and recognise this, as they see it “on the ground” through their work. Our mission, now, is to demonstrate it to the wider world too.
The plan
We will be making a number of changes both to the way the SAPCA Awards are delivered and the way winners are celebrated. These changes are designed to increase both the visibility and impact of the awards.
Another change will be an adjustment to the award categories.
From 2024 the awards will feature six distinct and permanent categories, providing clarity and stability.
The categories from 2024 onwards will be:
• SAPCA Person of the Year
• SAPCA Young Person of the Year (under 30 years old)
• Large Sports or Play Project of the Year (over £350k)
• Small Sports or Play Project of the Year (under £350k)
• Product of the Year
• Sustainability Award
Do you want to nominate a SAPCA member?
Entries have now opened for the SAPCA Awards 2024, with a deadline for submissions set for 1 December 2023. The Judging Panel will then sit in December to name the two finalists in each category and the winners will be announced at the SAPCA Awards Dinner on 29 February at Mattioli Woods Welford Road stadium, the home of Leicester Tigers.
If you have a great experience of working with a SAPCA member, either as a client or partner, and would like to nominate them for an award, do let us know! You can make your nominations here.
You can reach Richard Shaw, CEO, at: richard@sapca.org.uk