The fifth annual STAR Awards national ceremony – the Oscars of the further education sector – was held in London on 24 November 2008, with a chef, a college principal and an offender learning head among those honoured.
The awards received a record number of over 2,500 nominations, which were then assessed by a panel of independent experts, who drew up a short list and selected the overall winners. The huge learner interest in the 2008 awards lead to a new learner category being created for the 2009 awards - teaching, training and learning practitioner nominated by learners.