Q) What advice would you give to an organisation or individual entering for the first time?

Make it easy for the judges by structuring your responses around the criteria being assessed - don't make them look for the evidence.  Lay out your answer so each area of assessment is covered.  Some areas in your response may well be weaker than others but don't merely focus on the strengths you have in one criteria - if you don't provide any evidence in an area then judges have to score that area as zero.

Make sure your client feedback, whether from companies, universities or students is strong.  One quote from a friendly individual will not suffice - try and include a wide range of external comments or scores that back your submission.

Q) Why do you think awards like these are important for the student accommodation industry?

Recognition is never a bad thing, whether that is for a company or an individual.  Any service delivery company often gets bogged down with the negative side, such as customer complaints or building issues.  Celebrating success is a huge positive and reminds all involved in the industry how many good people are working in it to benefit the experience of thousands of students.  The Property Week Awards have come to be seen as a mark of excellence in the PBSA world and are highly regarded.