WIREDGOV

UK society in 2016 has been encapsulated with a stunning image tackling transgender issues – a photo which has won the ESRC’s annual photographic competition, Focus on Society.

The competition, now in its third year, asked young people aged 14-18 to take a shot which demonstrates how they see the world around them from a social science perspective.

More than 850 children from across the UK took part, entering a vast range of inspiring and thought-provoking images taken not only using their cameras, but mobile phones and tablets too.

On Tuesday (8 March), at a special ceremony at the Espacio Gallery in London, the overall winner was announced as Joanne Gallagher who took home the award of £200.

Joanne’s photo ‘Stand up for who you are’ looked at issues surrounding transgender. 
“This photo shows that self-confidence and an ability to relax, despite social pressures, can be achieved by being true to who you are,” Joanne, from Norwich, said.

“Jacqui (in the picture) has stood up to the norms and values of society, having been assigned male gender at birth, in order to become the confident woman she really is.”

Overall winner Joanne Gallagher with her image 'Stand up for who you are'

Other awards, in total worth £1,800, were presented to six category winners and five 'judges' favourites', as selected by Karin Woodley, ESRC Council member and Chief Executive of Cambridge House, a south London charity established in 1889 by Cambridge University to tackle poverty and social injustice; Sophie Batterbury, Head of Pictures at The Independent, i and The Independent on Sunday newspapers; Jacky Clake, Head of Communications for ESRC; Ollie Smallwood, a portrait and documentary photographer; and Jodie Krause, an Art Foundation in Design and Media student who has won awards at the last two ESRC photographic competitions.

This year’s categories included 'Cradle to the grave'; 'There's no place like home'; 'Green and pleasant land'; 'From rags to riches'; and 'Variety is the spice of life' – which opened up the opportunity for photos about a wide range of subjects such as family, economy, politics, culture, health and sustainability.

Joanne won the ‘Variety is the spice of life’ category.

Other winners included Nimra Shahid, who took home the prize for best ‘There’s no place like home’ entry with her photo ‘Mein’ which captures her favourite wall in Kingston-upon-Thames, symbolising her Pakastani origins.

Winner of the ‘Cradle to the grave’ category was Ella Tilley from Richmond, for her photo ‘1,642,500 Nights’ – a picture of a pile of mattresses which “could have been the start of life for one person but someone else’s deathbed” she said.

In addition to the prizes, each of the winners’ photos are being showcased at an exhibition, running until Sunday (13 March), at the Espacio Gallery, on Bethnal Green Road, in Shoreditch.

The gallery features 54 of the best photos entered into the competition this year.

Jacky Clake, ESRC Head of Communications, said: “After three years of running this competition, many thousands of photos have been submitted. However I must say that the standard keeps on getting higher and higher, it’s truly exceptional. We are delighted to see so many young people take part and really get to grips with what society in Britain is all about.”

Notes for editors

1. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK’s largest funder of research on the social and economic questions facing us today. It supports the development and training of the UK’s future social scientists and also funds major studies that provide the infrastructure for research. ESRC-funded research informs policymakers and practitioners and helps make businesses, voluntary bodies and other organisations more effective. The ESRC also works collaboratively with six other UK research councils and Innovate UK to fund cross-disciplinary research and innovation addressing major societal challenges. The ESRC is an independent organisation, established by Royal Charter in 1965, and funded mainly by the Government.

2. The Focus on Society photographic competition asked young people aged 14-18 to take a photograph showing how they see the world around them from a social science perspective. The competition offered five diverse categories (Cradle to grave; Green and pleasant land; From rags to riches; Variety is the spice of life; and No place like home), each allowing a range of subjects to be covered such as family, economy, politics, culture, health and sustainability. This year we also encouraged the use of mobile phones and tablets to take images, making the competition accessible to those who do not own or have access to a camera.

3. The winners for each category were:

   • Scarlett Armstrong, Amersham School - judge's favourite (Karin Woodley)
   • Olivia Arnold, St Augustine's Catholic College - joint category winner 'Green and pleasant land (Live and let live)'
   • Stanley Chick, Chatham & Clarendon Grammar School - judge's favourite (Sophie Batterbury)
   • Anne Daly, Peacehaven Community School - category winner for Mobile
   • Joanne Gallagher, Reepham Community School - overall winner and category winner 'Variety is the spice of life'
   • Tegan Johnson-Brunn, Farnborough Sixth Form College - judge's favourite (Ollie Smallwood)
   • Kiya Jordan, Loreto Sixth Form College - category winner 'From rags to riches'
   • Olivia Reynolds, Reepham High School and College - judge's favourite (Jodie Krause)
   • Nimra Shahid, Surbiton High School - category winner 'There's no place like home'
   • Dina Sharer, Hasmonean High School - judge's favourite (Jacky Clake)
   • Ella Tilley, St Catherine's School - category winner 'Cradle to the grave'
   • Natasha Wigman, Amersham School - joint category winner 'Green and pleasant land (Live and let live)'
   • Isabelle Middleton, The King’s High School for Girls - people's choice winner (chosen at the awards ceremony on 8 March)