Template for a Positive Prize Giving Speech

Here is a template to help you plan and write your prize giving speech, with details of the type of thing to say and when. Remember to take into consideration the various ages of the people you are speaking to and use appropriate language.

1. How To Start Your Prize Giving Speech

Introduce your speech by how pleased you are to be part of such an important day. It is a good idea to acknowledge the hard work of all those that have taken part, not just the winners, but do make sure that the winners are properly mentioned. This is also the right time to talk about the particular purpose of the event, if say the prize giving is part of an annual meeting or speech day.

• How you are proud to be part of the day
• Acknowledge all the hard work involved
• Highlight the achievements of the winners
• Mention the purpose of the day - speech day, for example

Example:Ladies, gentlemen, boys and girls, I am honoured to be a part of your prize giving ceremony and am grateful for this opportunity to congratulate the winners and all those who have taken part in this years achievements. Many of you will have strived to do your best in order to be a part of this ceremony and I believe that represents the true spirit of our school/college.

Although we all know that taking part is a key element in team sports, school events and life in general, winning is what makes us push ourselves and achieve our full potential. I am very impressed with the achievements of everyone here today, but I am especially in awe of those of you whose efforts will be rewarded today.

2. Presenting The Prizes and Congratulating the Winners

In many ways, a lot of the speech will be written for you if you are going to be presenting the prizes. If this is the case, be careful to annunciate the titles of the categories and the winner’s names – not just so they can hear you, but also because it is each person’s moment of glory and you want it to be a proper ceremony. In the same vane, be sure to ask someone in charge to clarify any unusual names so you get the correct pronunciation.

If you are not presenting the prizes, this is the perfect opportunity to pay credit to the winners, the staff and all the people involved by highlighting how the winners represent the ethos of the school or college. If appropriate, you can also read out a bible chapter, fable or suitable story. If in doubt, the classic tale of ‘Little Red Hen’ is perfect in this situation as it shows how it is only through dedication and hard work that we get rewarded.

• Present the prizes
• Pay credit to the winners
• Tell a short story about dedication and hard work

Example:The prize winners are a true representation of everything that we stand for here at (name of school or college) – these hard working, articulate young people are a credit to the school/college and an inspiration to us all. It is through such achievements that we are clearly able to see the skill, high expectation and commitment of the staff and pupils/students at (name of school or college) and these prize winners are great examples of what we hope for from our pupils/students.