Leyland, the London-based decorating and DIY retailer, has announced the return of its flagship community campaign, Big School Makeover, offering schools across the capital the chance to win a share of a £10,000 makeover jackpot – while giving pupils, parents and local communities the chance to rally behind their school.
Now in its fourth year, Leyland’s annual competition will see three schools receive a prize pot from the retailer to help transform their learning environments. The winning school will receive £5,000 to spend at Leyland, with two runners-up each receiving £2,500.
Nominations open today (Tuesday 1 September), with communities invited to put their local schools forward and showcase how a makeover could make a difference to its pupils and wider school community. Ten finalists will then be selected, before a public vote opens on Monday 19 October. Voting will close on Sunday 15 November, with the school receiving the most votes crowned the 2026 winner.
For Leyland, the campaign is about more than decorating and improving school buildings – it is an opportunity to support the communities at the heart of its London stores and give local people the chance to rally behind their schools.
Martin Hastings, CEO of Leyland, said: “Community engagement is a huge part of Leyland’s ethos. We’re proud to be part of communities across London, and the Big School Makeover gives us a brilliant opportunity to support local schools while bringing people together behind something that can have a genuine, lasting impact.
“We’ve seen first-hand how much these prizes can mean to schools, and we’re looking forward to seeing the creativity and community spirit behind this year’s nominations.”
The impact of last year’s competition demonstrated just what can be achieved when schools and their communities come together with Leyland support. Anson Primary School in Cricklewood was crowned the 2025 winner after receiving just under 3,000 votes, with more than 13,000 votes cast overall. The school secured £5,000 worth of Leyland products to help address maintenance challenges linked to its ageing buildings, while also supporting its plans to develop sustainability-focused learning opportunities.
Headteacher Simon Pile said the competition was “a fantastic way of promoting the school and engaging with the community,” adding that the funding and support from Leyland meant the school could focus its budget on teaching and learning.
South London’s La Retraite Roman Catholic School for Girls and North London’s Brunswick Park Primary School were also named runners-up, each receiving £2,500 to spend at Leyland.
With 36 stores across London, Leyland has long been part of the fabric of the capital’s neighbourhoods, supplying decorating and DIY products to tradespeople, homeowners and community groups. Through initiatives such as the Big School Makeover, the company continues to invest in the places and people that make up the communities it serves.
Schools and their communities can nominate for the 2026 Big School Makeover from Tuesday 1 September until Wednesday 20 September via leylandsdm.co.uk/bigschoolmakeover
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