PUPILS have had an exciting taste of engineering.

A group of Year 9 students from Whitby High School attended a three-day residential course at the University of Liverpool last month.

The event was part of the 'Get Ahead With STEM!' project from The Smallpiece Trust which aims to close the educational achievement gap for children from disadvantaged backgrounds and particularly girls, who are under-represented within STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) careers.

The students worked in teams on ‘design and make’ projects alongside young engineers from the Royal Navy, BAE Systems, Jaguar Land Rover and Urenco UK Ltd.

The enthusiastic engineers guided the students through every stage of product development, from initial concepts to final testing.

Projects included designing and making a 4x4 off-road vehicle, a submarine, a boat to carry cargo and a high speed centrifuge.

The event was organised by staff from Whitby High, The Smallpiece Trust and Aimhigher Cheshire and Warrington.

Teresa Wong, Aimhigher Cheshire & Warrington vocational development officer (Science, Engineering & Construction), said: “These residential courses are great opportunities for students to learn about engineering and the exciting careers it can lead to.

“Our students also gained important life skills such as teamwork, communication, creativity and problem-solving.”