During the afternoon, they completed an engineering challenge.  Beforehand however they listened to two interesting talks.  Mr Payne-Cook shared his industry experience of working alongside chemical process engineers to design and scale-up new products and Mrs Andrews shared her university insights and experiences in Civil Engineering.  The children were then tasked with building an aesthetically pleasing bridge from plastic straws and sellotape, to cross a deep gorge.  It was great to see the collaboration, creativity, curiosity and concentration in the room.  Many bridges managed to secure a load of over 500g, with three exceeding 800g.  It seems that Sir James Dyson doesn’t have to worry about the dearth of quality engineering graduates in the UK for too much longer!

Another element of this special afternoon was a PSHE/Drama workshop led by Mrs Walker and Mr Little. The children quickly put their performing and teamwork skills into practice, as the task they had to complete was to devise and perform a self-help advert on how to 'Send Peer Pressure Packing'.   It was wonderful to see our children talk insightfully about peer pressure in their environment. They also suggested some sensible solutions for how to manage that pressure. The joy was in the performances. The children presented their comical and engaging sketches with great energy and confidence.  The workshop proved to be a fantastic opportunity for the children to explore the complex issue of peer pressure, alongside a chance to entertain their friends and teachers.