Loughborough College joined Maggie Philbin OBE and Teen Tech for its first ever festival in the county.
The national organisation, which was founded by the television and radio presenter, held their inaugural event at the Morningside Arena in Leicester to inspire school children with science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) activities and to encourage them to learn more about courses and careers in science.
Loughborough College partnered with schools for project work developed ahead of the festival which was showcased on the day, when the College also hosted three hands-on STEM activities for 260 primary and secondary school pupils.
Mandy Coombs, Claire Hill and Kay Herbert from sixth form science at the College helped pupils produce their own special slime products and to discover more about the molecular structure of plastic and its impact on the environment. Hammad Ahmad, Dr Zoe Washington and Ndumiso Nsingo, from the College’s Space Engineering team, challenged young students to build and test hovercrafts, gliders and rockets to help them learn about astronautics. Stephen Bowen, Tim Fuller and Aaron Savva, from Apprenticeships in STEM at the College, meanwhile used maths activities and quizzes to offer pupils an insight into STEM careers and potential salaries.
Lucy Howes, Head of STEM and Academic at Loughborough College, said: "It has been great to work with pupils from local schools on their project-based learning and to support such a fantastic Teen Tech event. It is an essential part of Loughborough College’s work to encourage and inspire from the earliest age in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).
“We are forging partnerships not only with education providers but also with employers and decision-makers across the region to help build a STEM community which closes the skills gap and offers excellent opportunities for young people and employers in our area. At the College we are dedicated to providing our students with high quality STEM education which aims to keep pace with emerging technology and to meet the constantly evolving needs of the jobs market.”
Loughborough College project coordinator Des Gentleman added: “It was great to see so many young people enjoying the process of learning about STEM and truly rewarding to see the delight shown by our college staff in inspiring young minds."
Pictured: Maggie Philbin with Kay Herbert and Claire Hill from Loughborough College’s sixth form science team at the Teen Tech festival in Leicester