[T]he organisers of the Infinity Festival today confirmed that 210 students from across the county have been selected to attend the ground-breaking science programme being held in Cumbria in September.
All secondary schools were invited to attend the first event of its kind, which is headlined by Brian Cox, BBC broadcaster and Professor of Particle Physics at The University of Manchester.
To mark the milestone announcement, HM Lord Lieutenant of Cumbria, Mrs Claire Hensman, today visited the newly OfSTED-judged ‘outstanding’ West Lakes Academy in Egremont which is the location for the festival to meet with pupils selected to take part and some of the 44 student ambassadors from the school who will have supporting roles at the event.
Jonathan Johnson, Principal at West Lakes Academy welcomed the visit: “We are honoured to receive the Lord Lieutenant. The visit of a historical and significant regional representative of the monarchy will bring focus to the work of our school system to raise student aspirations and improve their life chances.”
HM Lord Lieutenant, Mrs Claire Hensman said: “I am so pleased to have been introduced to the Infinity Festival. It is a marvellous opportunity to open students’ eyes to the enjoyment of STEM subjects and the possibilities for their own careers. There are already many exciting jobs in science, engineering and technology in Cumbria and more to come in the future. I want to see local people with the skills to fill them. I hope the Festival will inspire the students to say “Yes, this is an area I am going to consider studying; it is offering very good prospects for my future”.
To be selected to take part, students aged 13-14 had to go through an application process which asked them to articulate why they wanted to be involved; what they will bring to the role and what they hope to gain from the experience. Each school then selected who would go forward to represent them at the event.
The event is set to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers through motivating talks and exciting hands-on experiments and workshops. It will feature a stellar line up of international superstars in the world of science, technology and engineering including experts in robots, insects, crime mapping, aircraft design, nuclear reactors, and a host of other exciting fields. Other speakers are due to be announced in the coming weeks.
The festival programme will also feature employment opportunities, training options and career paths. The evening reception, will include interviews with scientists and pupils by Prof Cox, engaging with parents to ‘get them on board’ supporting pupils to aspire to a future with no limits.
