A PEMBROKESHIRE teacher has won a special award for his work with students with additional needs.

On last night’s The One Show on BBC One, David Jones – a learner transition co-ordinator at Pembrokeshire College – was officially announced as the gold winner of the Award for Excellence in Special Needs Education in the 2023 Pearson National Teaching Awards.

David was nominated for his inspirational teaching, contributions to his school and community and influence among his colleagues, which – when assessed by the judges – earned him the gold award.

For more than six years, David has passionately served vulnerable learners with diverse needs. His mission is to empower every learner and celebrate their skills, talents and diversity. His motto is ‘let us show you what our students can do.’

David dedicates hours of his spare time each year to supporting and coaching young adults, including those in the justice system, to shine in competitions. Outside of work, he launched an independent living competition to allow learners with complex needs to showcase their talents and gain national recognition for their skills and abilities.

The news – which was shown on The One Show on Tuesday, November 21 – was broken to him at one of the college’s touch rugby games, where two of his former students handed him the award after special guests Welsh international rugby player Nicky Smith and The One Show’s Kevin Duala announced that he had won the award.

The One Show is announcing seven of the 16 gold award winners on its programme between November 20-24, with the awards ceremony being held on Saturday, November 25 and hosted by presenter Gaby Roslin.

The teachers given the gold awards were recently featured in a special exhibition in London to highlight their achievements which will be online shortly.

The Pearson National Teaching Awards is in its 25th year of celebrating the outstanding achievements of educators. Michael Morpurgo, author, former children’s laureate and president of the Teaching Awards Trust, said: “We all know that a great teacher can enrich your life, can help you rise to the challenge, believe in yourself, find your own voice. I know that because it happened more than once to me.

“That’s why these Teaching Awards are so important and important to me. Every year, without fail, we see nominations which move and inspire us and this year we have seen stellar examples of life-changing role models for young people. I want to once again congratulate the winners of the 2023 Pearson National Teaching Awards and thank them for the incredible impact they have on our communities.”