Two senior members of staff at Saltus Grammar School have received an internationally recognised award.

Deputy head and director of advancement, Jon Beard, and director of admissions and parent relations, Amanda Skinner, were awarded a professional designation through the Independent School Management (ISM) Advancement Certification programme.

Both received their certification at an award ceremony on the final day of the 2015 Advancement Academy in Virginia.

Mr Beard said in a statement: “ISM workshops are terrific in highlighting best practice for advancement in top schools around the world.

“They provide skills, they help apply theory to practice in individual school settings — and most importantly help you focus on how you can make the best contribution to your school.”

Mrs Skinner said: “Advancement is a critical part of any independent school and being recognised as an International Advancement Professional is very exciting.

“Saltus has supported my participation in various workshops that ISM offers and this has been critical to my receiving this certification.

“I look forward to working with Jon as we move our advancement team at Saltus forward and continue to best support our faculty and student body.”

According to a press release from Saltus, Independent School Management, Inc offers the only interdisciplinary set of credentials that recognises learning across the areas of admissions, development, and marketing and communications in private schools.