Your creativity doesn’t need to follow any rules, but entering the Our Space competition does. These are the rules- please make sure your read them all. We've tried to keep the rules simple, but they are important. So check these out and also the terms and conditions. Do make sure that you discuss your entry with your parents and get their permission before downloading anything.

Competition Rules

Competitions with out of this world prizes like this need the usual terms and conditions stuff - here are ours, make sure you read them all. Do make sure that you discuss your entry with your teachers and parents and get their permission before downloading anything.

  1. This competition is open to young people aged 7-18 who are citizens or residents in the UK. Entrants should check with a parent/guardian/teacher/educator before submitting material.
  2. All entries must be in English and must clearly state the name of the individual and/or school within the entry e.g. essay title or video caption.
  3. Only entries received in the specified formats will be acceptable. Entries in other formats, or with incomplete uploads or additional information will be disqualified. It is recommended that entries submitted in document form are sent in PDF format. While other document formats will be accepted, we cannot guarantee that they will be viewed in the same format as the creator intended, due to compatibility issues which can occur between different computers.
  4. All video, audio, photographs and other digital assets, materials and resources available on this website are provided free of charge for the Our Space educational project under a license for educational use only, including for the purposes of this competition. None of this material can be used for any commercial purposes whatsoever, and must not be distributed in any form beyond their immediate educational usage, including distribution on the internet.
  5. Employees and relatives of employees of BNSC, GovEd, QMUL, The Metro, and the Ideas Foundation are excluded from winning prizes.
  6. The organisers will not be held responsible for technical errors in telecommunication networks, internet access or otherwise, preventing entry at this website. In particular as the closing time approaches traffic to the website may be heavy so submit in good time
  7. Entrants must supply their name and a valid email address as the winner will be contacted by email. Failure to supply a valid email address will disqualify you from the competition.
  8. Entries must be received by midday GMT on 8th July 2010 for all films, mash-ups, stories and essays. (Note if you wish to submit for the Royal Commonwealth Essay Competition then you should submit your entry separately for their deadline). Check other competitions for their rules and terms and conditions. We are happy for you to submit your entry to more than one competition, but please advise the Our Space competition organisers if you are doing this.
  9. No purchase is necessary. Entries will not be returned, nor will they be removed from the website once posted.
  10. Multiple entries, (up to three in total per entrant), are allowed. The judges will only consider the version time stamped as closest to the closing date.
  11. Individual entries will be required to be the work solely of the named individual. Should evidence arise of to the contrary these entries will be disqualified. The judges' decision in such cases is final.
  12. The winner will be chosen by the judging panel. The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. The Judges reserve the right to modify judging criteria if required. Any such change will be notified via the News section of the Our Space website.
  13. All winners’ names and Grand Prize winning entries will be published in CosmOnline. The names of all the winners will be available on the Our Space website after the judges’ decision is available.
  14. All winners will be expected to take part in appropriate publicity events.
  15. Organisers shall not be liable for any loss, damage or injury suffered by entrants in connection with their participation in the competition.
  16. Submitting your entry constitutes your consent for us to use your entry, name and photos for editorial or publicity purposes, should you be a winner. It also commits you to agreeing to the terms and conditions of the competition – including copyright rules.
  17. The competition organisers will not be held responsible for any issues regarding copyright infringement (intentional or otherwise) in entries; the competition rules explain acceptable practice and all entries are expected to follow these criteria.
  18. The winners will be notified by email by 1st August 2010 that they have won one of the stated prizes in the competition. The winning entries may also be posted on www.our-space.org. Acknowledgement and confirmation of a secure delivery address is required from the winners before prizes will be dispatched. If for any reason the winner does not respond to the email requesting acknowledgement, we may select an alternative participant from the shortlist of competition winners.
  19. For the class prize “Challenger” mission there is a maximum of 34 students. Teachers/educators are responsible for ensuring that the students involved in entries they submit (group and individual) do not exceed this total. The timing of attending the winning mission will be coordinated through the National Space Centre’s Education Manager. In the event of a tie-breaker between entrants for the Class Prize, the winner will be decided by applying the same judging criteria as those used for the individual prizes.
  20. The National Space Centre free winners’ tickets to visit the National Space Centre must be used by 31st July 2011. Each winner will be entitled to bring ONE accompanying adult free of charge also. All winners MUST be accompanied by a parent/guardian during their visit to the National Space Centre.
  21. Winners of the Individual Grand Prize USA trip are themselves responsible for ensuring that any visa, passport, or health to travel health issues arising are dealt with as appropriate. Winners of this prize are also responsible for ensuring that any required travel insurance or additional personal expense while overseas is covered. The competition organisers will provide only the cost of to and from UK–USA flight, and the basic cost of the International Space School Education Trust experience. Risk assessment for this trip will be handled by the International Space School Education Trust in collaboration with legal parent/guardian of the student winner. The competition organisers will provide the core funding to cover this prize, but are not responsible for any failure to deliver due to other factors.
  22. Team entries for the class prize will be assumed to in fact feature appropriate contributions from all the students named by the teacher/educator in their submission. Submission of such entries will be taken as validation of these facts.
  23. The prizes are non transferable and no alternatives are available.
  24. Should prize winners not be available on the dates of prize events, or be unable to attend for any other reason they will forfeit this element of the prize.
  25. The judges reserve the right to not award prizes in any category if no suitable entries are forthcoming.
  26. The judges reserve the right to modify the prizes on offer should circumstances change. Any changes will be notified via the News section of the Our Space website.
  27. Winners will need to pay for their own travel and any arising accommodation expenses to any prize winners’ events e.g. Visits to National Space Center, House of Commons, Farnborough, INTECH Winchester, airports for departure and return from USA trip. The competition organisers will provide invitations and free entry to the events only.
  28. Any other expenses incurred by winners in attending events, or in uptake of prizes as specified must be covered by the winners themselves.
  29. The competition organisers can, at any point during the competition, provide clarification of these terms and conditions, these clarifications will be made available via the News or Tips & Guidance sections of the Our Space website.
  30. By entering the competition, entrants agree to be bound by these terms and conditions.

If you need further information, you can contact us.

If you have any technical problems with this website, please email: help@our-space.org.

Join the Competition

The deadline for entries to the Our Space competition has now passed.

Announcements about winners will be made on this site later in July 2010. You can still make free use of any of the resources available on this website. For any enquiries, please contact info@our-space.org.