I just found out about these today
Arts Awards

Anyone have any experience of these or views - good, bad or otherwise?

Link won't work for me but I assume you mean the ones where you have bronze, silver and gold, and do a sort of project based on one section of the arts (or several). I have just completed a Bronze one, on music of course There were four sections:
1. 'Taking Part in an Arts Activity' (and writing reviews, etc.) - mine was on the Cambridge Holiday Orchestra courses that I do each school holiday (I'm doing one this week!)
2. 'Going to an Arts Event' (and writing reviews, etc.) - mine was on a random concert that I went to. I kept the tickets and a flyer to stick in my folder, and wrote a review then got someone else to read it and write their own comments.
3. 'Arts Hero or Heroine' - find out about someone involved in the arts, biography etc., and write about them (I chose a random bassoonist who I once met at a holiday orchestra course)
4. 'Arts Apprenticeship' - either being an apprentice to a professional artist/musician, or teaching some of your own skills to someone else. I gave my little brother a taster lesson on the clarinet. I then wrote about it.

I think the arts awards are good because you can do a variety of different things in each section. (I hope that makes sense...)

dcmbarton - yes you are right, to enter a pupil's project you have to be registered, but I think a lot of schools/community colleges would be able to enter them, you'd have to ask around.

A long post, sorry, but I hope at least some of it is helpful!

Thanks - good to hear some details of what you actually did MB. My daughter is thinking of doing one of these.