The Diana Award: Historical Reference for Young Changemakers
A historical reference for the closed 2026 Diana Award cycle, a non-cash honour recognising individual young people aged 16 to 24 for at least 12 months of sustained social action or humanitarian work.
The Diana Award: Historical Reference for Young Changemakers
This page is a historical reference for the 2026 Diana Award cycle. It is not a live call for nominations. The Diana Award’s official Nomination Centre states that nominations for the 2026 award closed on 31 October 2025 at 17:00 GMT. The same page says that future nomination dates will be announced there, but it does not publish a replacement deadline. No next nomination date is therefore stated here.
The Diana Award is a global honour for individual young people whose social action or humanitarian work has created sustained positive change. It is run by The Diana Award, the organisation named on the official award pages. The award commemorates Diana, Princess of Wales, and recognises youth-led work in communities across the world. Its purpose is recognition and connection, not project finance.
Because the 2026 window is closed, the details below explain what that cycle required and what the official criteria currently describe in general terms. They should not be read as permission to submit a late nomination or as evidence that a new cycle is open. Anyone checking for a future opportunity should use the official Diana Award Nomination Centre, where a future date will be posted if and when The Diana Award announces one.
Key details
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Opportunity | The Diana Award, an individual recognition award |
| Current page status | Historical reference; the 2026 nomination window is closed |
| Organisation | The Diana Award |
| Type | Non-cash honour / recognition |
| Cash value | None; it is not a grant, scholarship, or cash prize |
| Closed-cycle deadline | 31 October 2025 at 17:00 GMT |
| Nominee age | 16 to 24 at the time of nomination; a recipient may be 25 when the award is received |
| Minimum work period | At least 12 months of social action work |
| Thematic areas | Quality Education, Reduced Inequality, Good Health & Wellbeing, or Climate Action |
| Nomination route | An adult submits a nomination for an individual young person |
| Next nomination date | Not announced on the official Nomination Centre |
| Geographic scope | Global |
| Typical annual recognition | Up to 200 young people, according to the official award page |
What the award offers
The Diana Award is not a source of money for a project. The official award page explicitly describes it as a recognition supported by community connection and post-award opportunities, rather than a financial grant or scholarship. A nominee should therefore be considered for the honour because their work deserves recognition, not because they need a project budget.
For the 2026 cycle, the official pages described the recipient package as:
- A Certificate of Recognition.
- A place on the Diana Award Roll of Honour, creating a public record of the contribution.
- Recognition through a virtual Diana Award ceremony.
- Opportunities to connect with a global network of young leaders.
- Invitations to Conversations for Change, a peer-led series focused on social issues, community, and shared learning.
These benefits are forms of recognition and participation. They do not promise payment, reimbursement, equipment, tuition, or follow-on funding. A social-action project that needs financial support should be matched with a grant or sponsorship opportunity separately. The Diana Award may strengthen a young person’s credibility with schools, employers, partners, or funders, but that possible benefit is not the same as a financial award.
Who the closed cycle was designed to recognise
The official criteria focus on an individual young person who has been carrying out meaningful social action for a sustained period. A one-day event, a short campaign, or an idea that has not yet been put into practice would not demonstrate the same continuity. The minimum period is 12 months, and the official wording links that period to sustained impact, commitment, and sustainability.
The work must fit at least one of four Sustainable Development Goal themes named by The Diana Award:
- Quality Education: work that helps people access learning or reach their potential.
- Reduced Inequality: work that challenges discrimination or promotes equity.
- Good Health & Wellbeing: work that supports mental or physical health and thriving communities.
- Climate Action: work that responds to environmental risks and protects the planet for future generations.
The themes are useful for understanding the assessment framework, but they do not turn this page into an open application. The 2026 submission window has ended, and the next window is not dated. The official Nomination Centre remains the authority for any future revision to the age range, themes, evidence requirements, or timetable.
Eligibility and nomination roles
The current general criteria on the official Nomination Centre describe both the nominee and the person who submits the nomination.
The nominee must be between 16 and 24 years old at the time of nomination. The official page says that a nominee may be 25 when the award is received, so age at submission is the relevant point. The nominee must also have carried out social action work for at least 12 months, and that work must align with one or more of the four themes listed above.
Self-nomination is not accepted. The nomination must come from an adult over 18 who knows the young person’s work in a professional capacity. The nominator cannot be related to the nominee. This distinction matters: being a friend or family member may make someone supportive, but it does not satisfy the stated professional relationship requirement.
The nomination also requires two additional supporters. Supporters must know the nominee and their work professionally, and they cannot simply be friends or family members. Each supporter is expected to complete a Supporter Statement in English using the official template. The nominator must provide the supporters’ contact details so their statements can validate the nominee’s impact, character, and credibility.
The official criteria also require three additional pieces of evidence. Examples given by The Diana Award include photographs or videos, press coverage, reports, testimonials, and project outcomes. The evidence must be in English. It should show what the nominee did, who benefited, how the work developed over time, and what changed as a result. Evidence is not a substitute for a clear explanation: the nomination still needs detailed information about the nominee and the specific work being recognised.
The 2026 timeline and current status
The official Nomination Centre records that the 2026 nomination window opened on 1 October 2025 at 09:00 BST and closed on 31 October 2025 at 17:00 GMT. The closing date is the deadline recorded in this page’s front matter. Since the window is closed, this page must not be used to invite a new 2026 submission or to imply that the form remains available.
The official page does not give a next opening date. It says that future nomination dates will be announced on the Nomination Centre. That means there is no responsible replacement deadline to put in this record. Do not infer a recurring month, copy a date from an unofficial listing, or treat the old 2026 dates as a future schedule. Check the official page for a new announcement before treating the award as open again.
For historical research, the closed dates still matter. They identify the cycle described by this record and explain why the front matter retains a real deadline instead of leaving the field blank. The historicalReference = true flag makes the archive status explicit to the site, while the body makes the closure clear to readers.
What the 2026 nomination process required
The 2026 route was a nomination process rather than a self-directed application. In practical terms, the completed submission needed to follow this sequence:
- An eligible adult identified an individual young person whose sustained work matched the criteria.
- The nominator checked the nominee’s age at the time of nomination, the 12-month work requirement, and the fit with one or more of the four themes.
- The nominator prepared the online form with detailed information about the social action and its impact.
- The nominator supplied contact details for two additional professional supporters.
- The two supporters completed their statements in English using the official Supporter Statement template.
- The nominator attached three additional pieces of evidence in English, such as reports, testimonials, media coverage, photographs, videos, or project outcomes.
- The nomination was submitted through the Diana Award Nomination Centre during the closed window.
The official page explains that nominations are first reviewed by The Diana Award team for eligibility. Eligible nominations then go to an external judging panel of volunteer experts. The process can include safeguarding, risk, and media checks before a final decision. Nominators are notified of the outcome by email. Those steps describe the closed 2026 process for reference; they are not instructions to submit after the deadline.
Preparing evidence for a future, unannounced cycle
Although no future date is published, the closed-cycle requirements show the kind of record a nominator would have needed. A useful archive of the work should establish a timeline longer than a single event, identify the people or communities served, and distinguish direct results from general praise. Attendance counts, delivery records, testimonials, project outputs, press coverage, and before-and-after evidence can help explain impact when they are available and appropriate to share.
The strongest account would also explain the nominee’s own contribution. A team may have delivered a project, but The Diana Award recognises individual young people, so the nomination should make clear what the nominee led, changed, organised, or sustained. Supporters should be able to confirm those details from their own professional knowledge rather than repeat a generic endorsement.
Evidence should be accurate, consented where necessary, and suitable for the official submission requirements. The current Nomination Centre says that additional evidence and Supporter Statements must be in English. It also asks for detailed information about the nominee and the specific social action. If the organisation publishes revised requirements for a future cycle, those revised instructions take priority over this historical summary.
Common misunderstandings
Is this a cash prize? No. It is a non-cash honour. The recipient benefits listed by The Diana Award are recognition, a certificate, a Roll of Honour place, a virtual ceremony, connection with young leaders, and Conversations for Change invitations.
Can a young person submit their own form? No. Self-nominations are not accepted. An adult over 18 who knows the nominee professionally must submit the nomination.
Can a friend or relative act as the nominator or supporter? The official criteria require the nominator and supporters to know the nominee professionally, and the nominator cannot be related to the nominee. A personal relationship alone is not enough.
Can a group be nominated as one entry? The official FAQ says the award recognises individual young people. Members of a group need separate nominations if each person is being put forward.
Is there a new deadline? No future deadline is published on the official Nomination Centre. The only date recorded here is the closed 2026 deadline: 31 October 2025 at 17:00 GMT.
Official links
Use the Nomination Centre as the source of truth for any future announcement. Until The Diana Award publishes a new nomination window there, this record remains a historical reference to the closed 2026 cycle rather than an active opportunity.