Meet the JDA Judges 2023

Meet the judging panel...

Every year we pick a selection of judges who we think have the inside track on fashion, lifestyle and wellness in the parenting arena. Stylists, designers, buyers, photographers, illustrators, educators, influencers and veteran parents are all on our list! This year, to mark our 25th anniversary we chose 25 stellar judges - some who are already firm friends and some new faces - to help us tot up the scores and really assess who deserves to win a coveted Junior Design Award.

We have a few far-flung, online judges this year and Sydney Piercey @sydney.piercey is in one of our very favourites places - the South of France! Sydney is the author of Sustainable Play, a book packed full of Earth friendly crafts and games, which no doubt, go down extremely well with her three daughters. We are huge fans of Sydney’s Instagram account where she documents her family’s beautiful, slow lifestyle in the countryside, renovating an old farmhouse with another baby on the way! We can’t wait to see what impresses Sydney at the JDAs - especially within our sustainable categories.

We’re extremely excited to welcome Tiffany Norris AKA The Mummy Concierge @mummyconciergehq back onto the JDA panel! Tiffany is mummy to Rupert, Ophelia, Tabitha and baby Humphrey who is just 3 months old and has worked with hundreds of pregnant and new mothers including celebrities and members of the Royal Family, in her role as Mummy Concierge. We can’t wait to make use of her expert knowledge on the JDA judging floor!

I am thrilled to be a judge for the Junior Design Awards. There’s nothing I like more than finding THE best baby kit to help make a parent’s life easier.

Next up on the JDA panel we have highly respected children’s stylist and artist, Yvadney Davis. @yvadney is a long-standing JDA judge who always gives incredible feedback regarding the brands she loves and you’ll often see the clothes that really float her boat on her gorgeous kids, MG, eleven and Lolo, 8. If you want to get an idea of how creative to the core Yvadney is, check out her dedicated art account @yvadneydavisart and you might recognise her on the upcoming Portrait Artist of the Year TV show on Sky. Go Yvadney!

Another judge who always brightens up our judging days! Talented artist and student nurse Mimi Dickson @mimidicksonpaintings joins the JDA panel once again. We first discovered Mimi when we saw her beautiful miniature illustrations of classic children’s books and we can’t wait to see what she thinks of our amazing selection of book entries, prints and more this year.

What an honour to be invited back to be a judge at this year's JDAs, I am so excited to see all the wonderful entries and know it will be a very tough judge!

Say hello to our favourite Antipodean judge Catherine Buttigieg, mother and stylist behind the visual feast that is @me_and_my_butts Based in Melbourne, Australia, Cat judges remotely for us and we’re always so impressed with her observations and feedback, informed by her in-depth knowledge of kids’ fashion and her own design background. One day we’d love to have her and her three brilliantly dressed kids at Junior HQ but until then we’ll keep admiring her incredible eye for print, colour and composition from afar.

Sarah-Jane Mee is back on the JDA panel! Our favourite Sky News Anchor will be dropping into Junior HQ in between news bulletins to cast her votes on this year’s entries! @skysarahjane is a mother of two and is always drawn to cute eco-friendly toys and gorgeous clothes. We can’t wait to see what catches her eye this year.

Welcome to the JDA judging panel Dom, AKA @bowinthesky ! Dom has two daughters, Delphie, 6 and Vida, 5 and having run her own handmade children’s decor business, she now shares her passion for kids’ interiors on Instagram and creates inspiring content full time. We’re so thrilled to have her on board!

I am so honoured to join the judging panel for the Junior Design Awards 2023. As someone who once ran a children's decor small business, I have long admired and enjoyed so many of the brands featured over the past years. I can't wait to immerse myself in all things kids’ design, get hands-on with some of my favourite products and make some wonderful new discoveries along the way too!

We knew she’d have a brilliant biog shot! JDA judge, award winning fashion and homewares designer, George Reddings! @george_ggredd_ is mum to sons Finley and Sam and spends her time working alongside Jools Oliver on the fabulous JDA winning @littlebirdbyjoolsoliver collection and her own recently launched sustainable womenswear label Colour Story @colourstory_studio

Having religiously read and collected those very first editions of Junior magazine as a young kidswear designer in New York 25 years ago, it is a real honour and privilege to be invited to be one of the 25 judges this year as they celebrate such a milestone birthday.

We are so thrilled to have you George!

Another brand new judge joins the JDA23 line-up! We are thrilled to welcome talented photographer @emmatunbridge to the team! Emma is mum to Eve Rose, age 3 and is known for her wonderful images capturing children and babies. Her work is defined by its strong sense of personality, fun and energy, reflecting Emma’s passion for her profession, which she tells us feels more like play then it does work.

I have been a reader and contributor to Junior magazine for over 10 years, I'm honoured to be involved in the awards this year.

The Junior Editorial team: Bonita and Ellie.

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We’re thrilled to welcome Laura Normanton @lauramnormanton onto the JDA panel! Laura lives in London with her husband and two children Rafferty, 16 months and Isabella, 2 months. Congratulations Laura! As an avid Interiors lover, editor and mother of two young children, Laura is a design and parenting aficionado!

Having had two children with a close age gap, I have been immersed head first into the world of babies and all that they bring. I am excited to be on the judging panel and to see some great design with products that not only work well but look good in the home.

Exciting news! We have a new judge to introduce! We’re so thrilled to welcome Leah Lane AKA @mymulberryhouse to the JDA23 panel. Anyone who follows Leah’s enchanting Instagram account will know what a hugely talented content creator and interiors wizard she is, letting us inside her beautiful home filled with her children, Raef and India and the occasional brood of chickens!

I am passionate about design for children, whether that is clothing, interiors or games and toys. Children are great imitators, so it’s important that we surround them with wonder and creativity so that they may grow up being our next generation of creators.

We couldn’t have put it better!

We’re getting very excited about the upcoming JDAs! Not least because we have yet another fantastic judge to announce! @soniaharia , Beauty Director of the Telegraph newspaper and member of the advisory board of the British Beauty Council is back on our panel. Sonia is currently on maternity leave with her third child and we can’t wait to see her and coo over baby Marni! Sonia also has two sons, Arjan and Ruben to keep her on her toes and we’re always enthralled by her expert knowledge and feedback on JDA entries.

I am so excited to be on the Judging panel for the Junior Design Awards for the fifth year in a row. It's always so exciting to see all the amazing innovation and creativity on the judging day!

Another fabulous judge! Stylist and Art Director Jemima Bradley @jemima_bradley__art_direction will be casting her expert eye over the JDA fashion entries and more. Jemima is mum to two very well dressed daughters, has over 20 years of experience in the fashion industry and works with an array of well known kids’ brands. We love her enthusiasm for new designers and her in-depth feedback is always spot on!

If you’re filled with wanderlust we recommend following JDA judge @zoeygotowriter Mum to Summer and Indiana, Zoey writes about her travels for titles including Junior, National Geographic, The Times and Conde Nast Traveller. In between exciting road trips she has written two brilliant books called Elvis Style and Vintage Style and she has a fabulous eye for stand-out design.

I’m really excited to be returning to judge the Junior Design Awards again this year! I love seeing all the new products and being introduced to gorgeous brands that weren’t previously on my radar.

Thank you Zoey! We can’t wait to see what gets your Winnebago in a tail spin this year!

Hooray! Art director, top children stylist and picture of elegance @traceyjacob1 joins the JDA judging panel once again. Tracey is a children's wear aficionado, having worked in the industry with everyone from top designers to small businesses. We can’t wait to see what catches her expert eye on the judging floor!

A warm welcome back to JDA judge Frankie Graddon, freelance journalist and mum to Alfie, 2 years and little Winnie, 2 months. Congratulations Frankie! As an ex fashion and beauty editor and highly respected freelance writer in the midst of life with small ones, we can’t wait to see what catches her keen eye.

It’s such a pleasure to be on the Junior Design Awards judging panel for the second year running. The continual innovation in the kids space is so impressive and needed - the right products make parenting a whole lot easier!

Wonderful news! Portia’s back! The brilliant @portiaportiaaaa is returning to Junior HQ to cast her votes on this year’s JDA entries. Portia lives in North London with her husband, Pete and their two sons, Dylan (13) and Rudy (8), not forgetting their first born, Lola, their dog! Having worked with the likes of Alexander McQueen, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Mario Testino and Steven Meisel as a model, Portia has a fabulous eye for style and is now a qualified mixologist, running the fabulously uplifting #PortiasHappyHour series on Instagram.

I couldn’t be more thrilled to be a judge for the THIRD time!!! I adore getting to explore all of the brands up close and learning more about who they are and where they've come from. It’s a huge deal for small brands and the JDA’s allow them to step into their spotlight.

If you need an incisive, well-informed and rounded analysis of a product from a serious beauty expert @mscharliejolly is your woman. We are so proud to welcome Charlotte Jolly, Beauty Director of Hello! and Hello! Fashion back onto the JDA panel and can’t wait to see what catches her attention and ticks all the boxes for her and daughters Olive and Sybil.

Please give a warm welcome to returning judge, stylist Charlotte Kewley AKA @thelittlestylist Charlotte knows kids’ fashion inside out, having worked in the industry for nine years, with a background in glossy magazines prior to that. Based in Saffron Walden with her three children, Isabella, Jesse and Cece, she has a strong insight into the practicalities of parenting as well as an eye for the most stylish kids’ clothes, accessories and interiors.

I’m so excited to be back judging the Junior Awards for my third time. I love discovering new brands and collections to feature - and seeing them up close - there are always a few gems that make it onto my personal shopping list!

We couldn't be more excited to tell you that JDA regular, author and hugely popular educational content creator @thedadlab is back on our panel. Sergei is father to Max and Alex and spends a lot of his time concocting exciting experiments and activities for them and his 1 million plus subscribers on YouTube. We are huge fans and his unique insight is always hugely valued. Thank you Sergei!

Hooray! One of our favourite judges is back on the JDA panel. The last time @jonathankirkby was at Junior HQ he brought his baby son Wilder with him and 2 years later he now has baby Aster to help him judge our fabulous line-up of baby products too! As well as being a dad, Jonathan is well qualified as a JDA judge. He is the Managing Director and Founder of award winning London based communications agency Instinct, working with huge children’s brands and events, including Disney On Ice, Marvel Universe Live and Monster Jam. Jonathan has also launched the UK’s first fresh baby food brand, supported a changing bag brand and even launched a maternity bra range.

I’m a huge fan of Junior magazine. As a parent it’s my go-to for discovering new products and fun activities to do with my boys. I’m forever sharing links to my parent friends. I’m honoured to be part of the judging process. The parent market is crowded, however when brands get it right they stand out and can really make a difference to our lives. I can’t wait to get stuck in and start reviewing what’s new across the categories.

We are thrilled to welcome @abicampbellphotography back to the JDA panel. Abi is a hugely talented photographer who works with brands big and small, bringing out the best of their unique style. The co-founder of creative agency and production company @newkidscreative, Abi has been incredibly hands-on with brands that have inspired her from the JDAs. When she’s not behind a camera, Abi is hanging out with her kids Ellis, 18 and Jemima, 16 and practising yoga.

Fun fact: This judge is no stranger to the other side of the lens. A model from age 16-26, she then moved into acting, securing her first job alongside Tom Cruise!

Another fabulous judge rejoins the JDA panel this year! Please say a big hello to Jakki Jones AKA @jakkidoodles
Jakki is a seasoned parent, with kids Riley (7) and Marley (3) and her two stepkids Colby (18) and Misty (16). So many great names! Having worked in Entertainment for over 20 years, Jakki has worked with celebs all over the globe and now heads up the VIP Talent services at Instinct PR.

I'm super chuffed to be part of the judging panel again this year. I look forward to discovering fantastic new brands and celebrating them - along with my old favourites. It's an absolute pleasure to be part of the awards this year - and thanks for having me.