BA (Hons) Photography student Neil Bankhurst has received this years Photography Achievement Award 2025. The award is in recognition of the student who has displayed a particular level of commitment and dedication to the practice and study of photography whilst an undergraduate on the BA Hons Photography programme. The award celebrates ability, development and progress.

Lecturers gave Neil the award because he “has dedicated the past three years to his photographic practice with great passion to learn, develop and understand. His growth through inquiry, critical engagement and commitment makes him a worthy winner of this award and it will be a real pleasure to follow his achievements as he moves forward.”

Originally from Stockton, Neil decided to join the school to develop his practice he explains “for many years I had taken photos for other people; at their weddings or for a corporate client, but not for myself, therefore I wanted to unleash my creativity and start producing work that did this. I also wanted to gain greater knowledge of photography to expand the training courses that I offer and after visiting The Northern School of Art on an open day I decided that it would be ideal for my studies.”

He said that his degree “was a great experience where I learnt new skills and gained the confidence I was seeking. The staff were always there to help and support me, with encouragement along the way. The course has given me the knowledge and confidence to progress my teaching career and my creative outputs such as the images I produce as well as the books and exhibitions.”

For Neil’s Final Project he “chose to document the rehearsals of Easington Colliery Brass Band using Analogue cameras with film and hand print in the darkroom for the final show exhibition. Skills which had developed during my time at The Northern School of Art. A main challenge with this was that the room was very dark and without being able to use flash I had to then progress my analogue skills and abilities quickly. I then had to scan the negatives and digitise for a book, which meant combining old and new in technological advancements. I loved seeing my work framed and exhibited, it really brings out the feelings and emotions in photos in my opinion.”

Speaking of winning his award Neil said “it was great to receive recognition for the hard work, passion and dedication to photography and the course over the past 3 years. One of the main reasons I enrolled was to build up my confidence in my work, winning an award such as this helps achieve this. I was shocked that I was chosen for the award and thrilled to have won.”

He said his favourite memory from the three years on his degree was “using the darkroom for the first time, seeing my photo come to life in front of my eyes was an amazing experience and still to this day amazes me. He said in Hartlepool he has “enjoyed the cinema  as well as the coastline, which is great for photography.”

For his next steps Neil said “I am progressing to a teacher training course at Teesside University and then onto a Masters in Documentary Photography from London.”

When asked what his advice for future student would be he reflected on his own experience returning to university as a mature student, “being a mature student, I had reservations about applying. I would say if you are older and considering a degree then just go for it, the support available means a return to education after many years is made easier and ensure that you ask for that help as soon as possible.”

Keep up to date with Neils work on his website, Instagram @neilbphotography and Facebook. If you are interested in studying photography at degree-level we offer a dynamic and well established degree programme, find out more about course details and how to apply here.