Creative youngsters from five schools across the North West will this week battle it out for the honour of representing the region in the national final of a prestigious civil engineering design competition.
The twelve and thirteen year-olds have worked to design models of sports stadia from a futuristic velodrome to an environmentally friendly ‘sports island’.
Their ambitious visions for the future of sports facilities in the UK are part of ‘Create Sport’, a competition designed to promote an understanding of the importance of civil engineering within our society.
Now the six teams from five schools will present their submissions to an expert panel of judges at the Manchester offices of the Institution of Civil Engineers North West on Thursday (19 May).
The finalist teams hail from:
- Withington Girls’ School, Fallowfield, Manchester;
- Penketh High School, Warrington;
- Our Lady Queen of Peace, Skelmersdale;
- Royton & Crompton School, Oldham;
- Knutsford High School, which has two teams in the final.
ICE North West Regional Director Alan Butler says it’s more important than ever to engage young people early in the dynamic and vital field of civil engineering.
“Studying for a degree in engineering requires an education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, so engaging pre-19s is vital to ensuring new talent is attracted into the profession,” said Mr Butler.
“This project will give school students a chance to gain hands-on experience of the kind of work civil engineers do day-to-day, highlighting the range of skills needed and impressing on them the career opportunities that exist within the built environment,” he added.
The students have been guided by an ICE schools ambassador, in planning and designing their venue. The teams have been challenged to think about the project from an engineering perspective, taking into account real technical, infrastructure and sustainability constraints and concerns such as transport links, flooding, drainage and water use, energy use and generation, environmental biodiversity, communities planning and safety aspects.
Create Sport has been developed in partnership with Arup and the Engineering Development Trust (EDT), challenging 12 to 13 year olds across the UK to plan, design and construct a model for a new sports venue in their region.
Thursday’s successful team will take their winning design to ICE’s head offices in London, where they will participate in the grand final against teams from across the UK on 27 June.
The winning teams will be eligible for a range of prizes including exclusive visits to major sports and engineering sites, cash and signed memorabilia.