Institution news
Over the past few years, Tyne Tees Automobile Division (TTAD) has developed a structured outreach plan with local primary and secondary schools. Reducing its number of lecture-style events, the TTAD has shifted the emphasis of its work to STEM engagement, using Greenpower as the spark.
At the outset, Mike Lambert CEng FIMechE, Chair of the TTAD, secured Institution education funding for a Greenpower car kit at a secondary school in Darlington. Cummins, where Mike has worked for over 40 years, sponsored an additional car and volunteers worked with the students to get both vehicles ready for their Greenpower event.
Mike explains how this strategy has significantly grown the Institution’s outreach presence in the region: "After our first two secondary school cars in Darlington, we supported two primary schools, called Springfield and Norton. They competed in Greenpower Goblins in 2015, and on the back of that I developed a schedule linked to Greenpower in the North East and set up the ways in which the IMechE can support it.
“There are now more than 20 schools in this year’s programme. Children can stay connected as they go through their education – from Goblins for primary to Formula 24 for secondary age-group. We are aiming for 40 primary schools in our programme by 2017.”
Mike has raised £3,000 from different Institution sources, using these funds to build two demonstrator cars, one primary and one secondary, which are to be used on a STEM programme going forward.
The demonstrator programme’s aim is two-fold: it provides an opportunity for children to engage in some hand-tool work; and builds the volunteers’ confidence to take the next step into supporting a school’s Greenpower team.
The demonstrator car is also taken to science fairs in the region, raising the profile of the Institution among children and families, as well as teachers.
Over 800 secondary students attended a recent ‘Work Discovery Week’ at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light. Mike’s demonstrator car team ran a competition to ‘fit the wheels to the car’, with 16 school teams taking part over the course of a day.
The Institution's North East Region volunteers also promote the Institution and engineering at the Greenpower Croft heats, where school teams compete in the Goblins competition in July. They took the primary demonstrator car and engaged with 11 local schools and teachers.
Mike says that the volunteer base has increased significantly, thanks to the emphasis on a practical, hands-on strategy for promoting engineering.
He said: “In the Greenpower project, our volunteers tend to go for an hour-and-a-half session at the school with between eight and 15 children, working in two groups. During that process, engineers focus on the building of the car, and chat and converse with the children.
"This builds a relationship where the children can ask questions about careers and routes to engineering.
"This is meaningful engagement, which young people these days encounter less than in the past. It can be more powerful than just a quick visit to a factory, and has been found to encourage young people to carry on and ultimately join our profession.”
Having seen the positive impression on volunteer numbers and school take-up, Mike hopes this approach can be adopted in other regions: "We have 90-100 local engineering volunteers, enthusiastic to come to Greenpower outreach because they like its interactive nature.
"It offers a stimulating, hands-on project for children. The emphasis is on efficiency with high-quality production, as teams are measured on the efficiency and effectiveness of the car rather than its speed; and we have also developed some STEM volunteer modules that link to the project.”
Find out more about the North East Region and volunteering for outreach work.
Become a Greenpower volunteer.