SCHOOL pupils built hovercrafts at an event designed to inspire their interest in engineering and science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem) subjects.

Year nine and ten pupils from Darlington schools also designed the working vehicles, capable of carrying a pilot, during a day-long session under the Foundation for Jobs banner, which was hosted by the town’s Queen Elizabeth (QE) Sixth Form College.

Stephen Hunnisett, viceprincipal at the college, a partner organisation in Foundation for Jobs, worked alongside a specialist team from Bradford University’s School of Engineering, Design and Technology, to develop and run the event.

It was aimed at inspiring pupils’ interest in engineering and their understanding of the practical use of Stem subjects.

It is hoped such events will encourage young people to consider careers in engineering disciplines, where there are expected to be thousands of job opportunities in the North-East over the next decade Mr Hunnisett said: “It was great to see these young people having fun applying their maths and science to an exciting project. The task also gave them a really good experience of working together as a team to solve a real-life problem, using their imagination and inventiveness.”

Two teams of students from QE who are considering careers in engineering also took part. Students from QE, who already have offers of university places to study engineering, acted as mentors for the teams.

Having designed and built the hovercraft, the pupils raced them to see whether their designs converted into good performance.

Joanne Crowther from Bradford University’s School of Engineering Design and Technology, said: “We were greatly impressed by the way the students engaged with the hovercraft project at the QE.

“They all worked well in their respective teams, listened well to instructions and the proof was really in the pudding during the Great Race when every hovercraft functioned well. We witnessed some of the fastest hovercraft we’ve seen since running this project in over ten years.”

Encouraging young people’s interest in engineering and other sectors where a large number of jobs are to become available in the North- East, is a key focus of Foundation for Jobs, a partnership between The Northern Echo, Darlington Borough Council, education providers and the Darlington Partnership of public and private sector firms and organisations in the borough.

The national award winning project aims to tackle youth unemployment, partly by ensuring our young people develop skills that firms need to fill vacancies in the region, but which many presently have to go further afield to source.

For information on Foundation for Jobs and its work, go to thenorthern echo.co.uk/news/campaigns/ foundationforjobs/