David is Managing Director and co-founder of Crown House Publishing. He worked for British Gas in management services before starting in education publishing. His company’s books focus on positive education and independent thinking and learning.

What David is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2018 -
A person or school who is relentlessly positive in everything they do and who inspires others to be the same. Someone who looks for the best in others and encourages them to shine.

Wayne is MD of UK Heath Services and has worked for Bupa since 1992. He has held many senior roles within the company in the capacity of CEO/ MD and CFO.

He is a trusted leader and entrepreneur and has accumulated considerable experience in business turnarounds, acquisitions, re-engineering, joint ventures and partnerships. He is experienced in sponsoring and managing complex multi-million pound projects and managing business change. He also has a keen eye for everyday business improvement. He builds strong teams and encourages those around him to take on new challenges, actively promoting personal development. He is also used to working in highly regulated environments with multiple stakeholders.

Wayne has a degree in Accounting and Finance, a Master’s in Management and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and a Chartered Global Management Accountant. He is also a Chartered Director with the Institute of Directors. He has attended Cranfield University and London Business School on their senior development programs.

Wayne is married to Deb and has three children. He enjoys reading, keeping fit and classic cars.

Nina is an International Education Consultant, author, award winning speaker and is a leading practitioner in outstanding learning and teaching, mental health and wellbeing. She has a particular gift of working with SEND and engaging disaffected learners. Her training courses on all aspects of Learning and Teaching always leave educationalists wanting more - she is in high demand for working with teachers, students and educationalists alike. She is an Associate Director with 'Independent Thinking Ltd'.

Winner of the IPDA International Prize for Education and described by the TES as an ‘inspirational, evangelical preacher of education’, Nina is a tour-de-force when it comes to enlivening teaching and learning for all. Her background as an innovative teacher and leader of learning, trainer and education consultant has had an overwhelming impact on education both in the UK and on an international basis. She has worked with the Ministry of Education, UNESCO and UNICEF in Chile, Ghana, India, China and the Middle East. She has devised therapy programmes and curriculums of engagement for reluctant learners and has delivered training to teachers from Early Years to Higher Education.

Nina is one of the happiest, effervescent personalities in education today and puts her own learning, and the learning of others at the heart of everything she believes in. Many will know her as a ‘Ninja – who loves to move in mysterious ways’.

What Nina is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2019 – In a time when individuals, groups of people, the workplace, education and communities are under a great deal of pressure,  I’m looking for special individuals and schools, those extra ordinary heroes of happiness that bring joy, hope and love to others (as well as themselves) to show and share with us their special ways that keep us all going in this crazy world of accountability. Quite simply, I want you to make me smile a lot. 

Dave is Headteacher at Flakefleet Primary School in Fleetwood, winners of the Happiest Primary School 2018, one-time Christmas No. 1 Contender and Britain’s Got Talent Finalist in 2019. Dave’s #daretodream philosophy permeates all aspects of school life and his mission to develop resilience, nurture self-confidence and raise aspirations is relentless. The school employs a large number of staff to successfully support the various challenges that their children and families face, both in and out of school. A positive and optimistic culture that encourages continuous personal development and the embracing of innovation and change is at the heart of Dave’s mission at the school. Parental and community engagement is very high, staff retention rates are 100% over the last few years, pupil numbers are increasing, and standards continue to rise. Dave knows that a happy school is a successful school.

What's made you laugh a lot recently?  
I cried with laughter when I sent my other half the wrong phone number for someone to fix our washing machine. There were two Elaines in my phone book, one knew about washing machines, the other didn’t. I sent her the number of Elaine who didn’t. My other half (and Elaine) couldn’t figure out what each other was on about and it all got very confusing - turns out people who do curriculum training aren’t that good at fixing kitchen appliances.

What's the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you at work?    
Couldn’t decide between splitting my trousers whilst on the climbing frame with the kids or turning up to a governing body meeting in fancy dress because I’d forgotten my change of clothes. 

What makes you truly happy? 
It may sound a bit cheesy, but I really like helping people feel better about themselves or to feel empowered to make positive changes in their lives.

What's the worst bit of corporate jargon you've ever heard? 
It’s not corporate jargon as such but I really hated it when a previous Ofsted chief came in to post saying "If anyone says to you that 'staff morale is at an all-time low' you know you are doing something right." What a load of rubbish – a happy workforce with clear expectations and support has to be more productive and have a greater impact. The idea that the best bosses are ‘tough’ is a load of rubbish.

What would be your superpower and why? 
I’d love to be able to control the weather – I’m not a big fan of the dark winter months but do love a bit of sledging! 

What advice would you give your younger self?
Believe in yourself, stop worrying about what other people will think and go for it.

What would fix the world?  
More thought and consideration for each other.

Who would be on the fantasy guest list of your dinner party?
Kylie Minogue for the music (honest), Derren Brown for a bit of magic, Robbie Williams for the stories, Tony Blair for a bit of politics to stir things up and Nigella Lawson to help with the food. 

What Dave is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2019
I'm looking for a clear determination from applicants to develop a happy and optimistic culture through innovative and creative ways that challenge long-held norms but lead to successful outcomes.

Physiologist Nerina Ramlakhan PhD has over 20 years experience in maximising individual and organisational performance. She founded BUPA’s Corporate Wellbeing Solutions and has worked extensively in the public and private sector.

After completing her post-doctoral training and research into the effects of lifestyle interventions on mental disorders, she spent five years in corporate health screening before studying organisational psychiatry and psychology at Guys Hospital. For over a decade she worked with the Nightingale Psychiatric Hospital in London on their sleep, energy & physical health programmes.

Nerina’s work with individuals and organisations includes motivational and leadership programmes, wellness and energy programmes, return to work coaching following long-term sickness absence and burnout prevention. She also runs regular sleep/energy workshops for women recovering from cancer at the Haven Centre in Fulham.

Nerina’s work is featured regularly in the national press and she has appeared on BBC radio, GMTV, ITV’s This Morning, CNN and SKY NEWS.

Nerina is the sleep advisor to the Silent Night bed company and Melia Hotels and Resorts.

What Nerina is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2018 -
I'll be looking for initiatives that bring happiness into organisations and examples of the impact these have. How do they engage their people and are the initiatives measurable? For the individual awards I'll be looking at the actions the nominees do and how these impact on the people around them.  Is their happiness infectious? 

Leon is Twinkl’s Chief Customer Officer and one of our National Happiness Awards judges.

Leon taught KS1 and Lower KS2 for over five years before joining Twinkl in 2015. She has always been a huge champion of Twinkl’s mission; ‘to help those who teach’. As Chief Customer Officer she wants everyone who uses Twinkl to have the best experience possible.

Leon oversees the customer support and customer experience teams, which provide 24/7 support to educators across the world.

This year she is driving a focus on wellbeing, leading her team to explore what more Twinkl can do to support schools and educators in this area. In her own words Leon and her team ‘make people happy’, which is one of the reasons she is so pleased to be judging the National Happiness awards.

Leon lives in Sheffield and loves to spend time with her children in the great outdoors taking advantage of the city’s parks and its close proximity to the Peak District.

She is passionate about supporting the happiness and wellbeing of educators and school communities world-wide, believing that an effective learning environment is a happy one.

What Leon is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2019 - Leon is hoping to find entries that focus on and involve people from across communities and include strong examples of where people have done things for the right reasons and put others first.

She is also looking for entries where people have tried new things and dared to be different in order to bring happiness to those around them.

As a ‘frequent crier’, anything funny, inspiring or joyous enough to turn on the water works will be a hit with Leon too!

Gill joined CIPD in July 2012 as Head of CIPD Training and was appointed a director for the newly formed directorate of careers & CPD in September 2013. Since then she has taken responsibility for the content, commercial, regional and international teams. She is currently the business and markets development director. Her remit covers commercial enterprises, business development and the international and regional areas.

Gill delivers speeches and workshops around the world which focus on the future of learning and development, leadership, strategic alignment and behavioural science.

Prior to working for the CIPD, Gill has held a variety of L&D leadership roles at Vodafone, Xchanging and SSP. She also held operational roles at consultancy IDology, Whitbread, Greenall’s and Vodafone.

Gill holds the prestigious IOD chartered director status, one of only 1,000 in the UK. She is also a fellow of both the IOD and CIPD. Gill’s main passion beyond learning and behavioural science remains her love of wine, something she studied to degree level when working in the trade. She is never happier than when reading a book on the brain, accompanied by a nice pinot noir.

What Gill is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2018 -
What I look for is the additional evidence – like videos or photos that help bring the entry to life. Anything that really helps demonstrate the impact that the intervention has had makes it more compelling.

Rob is managing director of Simply Better Events, a full-service events agency. Their purpose is to inspire people to think, feel and do things differently and they do this by creating remarkable event experiences.

Simply Better recognise the important role that live events have in creating positive employee engagement, which in turn leads to a happier, more productive workplace.

What Rob is looking for in entries to the Happiness Awards 2019 - “Afters” are key for me. It’s not just about programmes or processes that have been put in place, but more about the tangible impact that these initiatives have had…so measurement is key!