Comment & Analysis
It’s tough not to feel a little out of your depth when you enter the Big Bang Fair. Immediately you catch sight of the exhibition hall, the air is filled with the din of thousands of children, like the sound of an indoor swimming pool during peak after school hours.
The sound of kids having fun, intermingled with whoops, screams and the odd explosion or two, is with you wherever you go at the Big Bang Fair (BBF). The event at the NEC expects to attract more than 70,000 young visitors this year and there are hordes of school kids present when I visit. There’s three days for organised school visits, Wednesday through to Friday, and then Saturday is for families. BBF is aimed at 7 to 19 year olds, although the oldest I see when I visit has to be about 16.
After several years, the organisers know what sells science and engineering. The first stand you see is the Bloodhound one, where the firework-propelled model cars children are racing emit sulphurous smoke into the air. Then there’s the Airbus Defence and Space stand, complete with Mars Rover and space suits, a stand for film and TV special effects that features virtual reality goggles, an Army armoured vehicle to clamber about on and a race car simulator on the McLaren stand.
Science and engineering has come a long way in its efforts to become more entertaining and appealing. The “mad science” atmosphere is certainly thick at the BBF, there are several stages hosting experiments throughout the day, themed around things such as chocolate and explosions. Some people question the educational value of these shows, but at least the children are engaged. I hear one presenter sum up the trade-off on stage: “You’re all listening really well. I know you just want to see me make a mess with the alien goo and the bass bin,” he says, “just a few more minutes of this, we’re nearly there”.
But, interspersed amongst the infotainment stands are the ones that lack the explosions and goo. There is a sober stand for the Biomedical institute. The nuclear industry is here, Sellafield and Urenco. The defence industry has a strong presence, with BAE Systems and Northrup Grumman. A man on the Johnson Matthey stand is pointing at a laminated plastic poster, explaining to a group of 13 year olds what smart manufacturing is. I stop and listen and learn a thing or two myself. 3D printers pull in crowds of children at the Rolls-Royce stand. Just not as many as the Institution of Civil Engineers’ stand next door, which is giving away massive free lollipops.
Does that really matter? The BBF is fun, more fun than I expect a careers fair to be and more fun than I’d imagine a banking careers fair could ever be. And the BBF is a careers fair at its core. It has received criticism for being too PR-led by big corporations. I think that’s harsh. Many of the companies at the BBF are acting to ensure they have a pipeline of talent for the future, not just to soften their PR image. For an event that is set up and run on goodwill, it’s not a bad few hours out for a school kid, and if it raises the profile of Stem subjects and careers at the same time, where’s the harm?
More information on the Big Bang Fair can be found here.