The University was commended for Best International Campaign for helping to prepare new graduate students to start postgraduate studies at Lancaster.

The campaign was aimed at 322 students from Africa and South/SE Asia using a combination of digital media, events and phone calls. The resulting feedback was very positive and the students said it helped them to adjust both to postgraduate education in the UK and to life at Lancaster.

Lancaster was also commended for Best Teaching Team in the Arts and Humanities for its Creative Writing distance learning MA teaching Team, which supports students through individual tuition, online conferencing, and a Summer School on campus.

The teaching team included Tom Pow, Diran Adebayo, Sarah Corbett and Conor O’Callaghan. Supporting and leading them as course convenors were Dr Lee Horsley and Professor Graham Mort, who attended the prize-giving ceremony in Manchester hosted by BBC broadcaster Laurie Taylor.

Rob Keeley, who graduated from the MA programme with a Distinction, commented: "I'm delighted to hear of the DLMA team's success in winning a Highly Commended award.  I've just completed two highly useful and enjoyable years studying for the Creative Writing MA and hope that my association with Lancaster will continue for many years to come."

DemoPad Software Ltd, which is based at Lancaster University’s InfoLab21, was the only organisation to receive the Judges’ Commendation. It received the award in the Best Business Partner category for its ongoing collaboration with Lancaster University, including the company’s involvement in the Centre for Global Eco-Innovation, part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.

Professor Mark E. Smith, Vice Chancellor, said: “It is a great achievement that the University received commendations for its Creative Writing and Best International Campaign, and also a special commendation for one of our resident companies. This reflects the tremendous work of our academics and staff in these areas to ensure our students receive a truly world-class learning experience at Lancaster University.”

The judges commended DemoPad for how it has embedded the organisation into the institution, providing a best practice model for other SMEs to follow.

Michael Cain, managing director at DemoPad said: “We are delighted to receive this award, which is testament to our close collaboration with the University and the resulting mutual benefits. We have recently taken up residency at InfoLab21 on campus, ensuring both students and our business benefit by the sharing of expertise”.