It takes a lot of patience and dedication to reorganise an entire library in your spare time but Naomi Briggs set about the challenge with gusto.

Naomi has been a teacher at Smitham School for five years and was nominated for a Champions award by Helen Oliver, who said it was a privilege for her child to have been taught by her.

"I was completely humbled finding out that someone had felt that I have had that much of an impact on their children. I love my job and seeing the look of excitement when the children have understood something for the first time," Naomi said.

Naomi set about reorganising the school library because she felt children lacked an area that would encourage them to pick up a book, share it with a friend and improve their reading skills.

"I wanted the children to feel confident when choosing books for pleasure or for study and not to feel afraid of the world of print, no matter what their ability.

"I wanted to make sure that there was a range of texts available for the children, including comic books, graphic novels and big books. I purchased a new computer library programme and with the help of a mum and some teachers we re-catalogued the books and moved them to a new location."

Beyond teaching her classes, Naomi has also organised a year four sleep over and helped children enter a rap competition.

"The girls involved in the competition called themselves The Safety Chicks' and wrote a rap about road safety. They came second in their category and won £75, which they chose to spend on outdoor play equipment for the rest of the school.

"For the sleepover we thought it was important for the children in year four to have a chance to stay away from home and be involved in a range of team building activities similar to those that take place on the trips away in years five and six. We did this to make them feel more confident on these journeys"

Naomi said an important element of her job is to go that extra mile beyond her work in the classroom.

"I feel that it is all part of my role as a teacher. If an opportunity arises that is going to benefit the children then it is my responsibility to grab that and give it to them."