The Classic FM Music Teacher of the Year Awards with ABRSM - revealing our 2026 winners!
15 September 2026, 15:25 | Updated: 19 September 2026, 12:39
Every morning this week at 11.30 am, we’re revealing the winners of our Music teacher of the Year Awards...
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Earlier this year, we asked you to nominate an inspiring music teacher in your life, who deserves reward and recognition.
Now, it’s time to reveal the winners of the 2026 Classic FM Music Teacher of the Year Awards with ABRSM! This week, we’re celebrating six exceptional music teachers, who are inspiring young minds and opening up access to music education across the nation. The winners will each receive a share of £20,000 of musical instruments and equipment, thanks to Viking.
And the winners are...
Secondary School Teacher: Selale Akdeniz
The Bemrose School, Derby
Selale joined her school in 2020 at the height of the pandemic, and threw herself into making sure students were engaged in an online music curriculum.
She has built up the school’s music department to become a lead school for the Derbyshire Music Hub, established and grown a successful school choir with increasing participation and standards, and secured opportunities for them to perform. The Bemrose School has a significant proportion of Roma students, and Selale has created an inclusive environment where they report feeling engaged, understood, and confident.
Best Classical Music Community Programme: Jack Holmes
Hebden Bridge Junior Band
Jack is a 25-year-old trombone player who grew up playing in the Hebden Bridge Junior Band from the age of 8. He has since progressed to play in a local brass band, but returns to the Junior Band every Thursday evening to teach the next generation of brass band players, occasionally standing in for the conductor to direct the whole junior band.
Jack demonstrates outstanding enthusiasm, maturity and patience with the younger brass players, who credit him with maintaining their interest in playing by being an inspirational role model and creating a safe and trusting environment. Jack plays a key role in bringing brass band music to local families and communities, who might never have been involved with it otherwise.
Primary School Teacher: Paul Robinson
St. Fidelis Catholic Primary School, Erith
Paul has been a teacher for more than 40 years, and has spent the last 16 years as primary school music teacher at St Fidelis Catholic Primary School in Erith.
In his time at the school, choir participation has grown from 20 to 108, and the number of children receiving music lessons from 25 to 81. He also founded Bexley Choral Festival, which has become a well-loved part of the annual calendar for ten different schools and over 600 children, raising the standard of primary school singing for all.
Under Paul’s leadership, the school choir was invited to sing at Buckingham Palace for the King’s Christmas Speech in 2025.
SEND Music Teacher: Adam Bell
Springwell Academy, Leeds
Adam is Head of Arts at Springwell, an SEMH (Social, Emotional, Mental Health) school, and teaches students with often very complex personal circumstances.
Every year, he arranges live performance opportunities for his students which help them build self-esteem and gain a sense of achievement. He has organised and led a school trip to Italy where students had the opportunity to perform internationally, and one of his students has gone on to study music at university.
His nominee said: “Adam is a role model who broadens horizons, changes outcomes, and leaves a lasting legacy in the lives of his students. He has inspired countless students to believe in themselves, helping them see possibilities for the future that they may never have considered before meeting him.”
Lifetime Achievement Award: Barbara Clarkson
Newlands’ Girls School, Maidenhead
Barbara’s teaching career has spanned almost 60 years, 47 of which have been spent at Newlands Girls’ School.
In 1979, she founded the Madrigal Choir at the school, and has continued to run it ever since. Barbara organised European tours for the choir, and continually adapted the choir’s repertoire and style to ensure it remained relevant, inclusive and engaging.
The choir has performed at some of London’s most prestigious venues, including the Royal Albert Hall and the Southbank Centre, and has appeared on national TV and radio broadcasts.
Visiting Music Teachers & Private Tutors: Tim Boulton
MusicAbility, Penzance
Tim Boulton is the Director of Cornwall Youth Orchestra, Penzance Junior Strings and Truro Youth String Orchestra, in addition to running other ensembles, being a private music tutor, and founding ‘MusicAbility’, which offers Music Therapy and Education to local children from all backgrounds, with bursaries available for children who cannot otherwise afford to learn an instrument.
He has set up at least 5 youth ensembles and string orchestras, with a clear path of advancement from one to the other – these orchestras all play locally, as well as having the opportunity to play at prestigious annual events in Birmingham and the Royal Albert Hall.
