Children from across West Cumbria have battled for a place in the First Lego League National competition in May.
61 children from six schools took part in the annual international contest at Lakes College, Lillyhall, near Workington, on Tuesday, putting the robots they have been designing since October to the test in a series of real-world challenges.
Each team designed an autonomous Lego robot capable of carrying out tasks linked to marine exploration and the oceanic environment.
Using engineering and advanced programming skills alongside teamwork, communication and collaboration, the robots completed their missions on a themed playing field within a strict time limit.
A Seascale Primary School team emerged as this year’s victors and will now go through to the nationals in Harrogate.
The event, organised by Industrial Solutions Hub (iSH) and The React Foundation, both based in Cleator Moor, and supported by STEM ambassadors from both Sellafield Ltd, React Engineering and Amentum, promoted skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics through hands on learning and problem solving.
Hannah Pears, skills lead at iSH, said: “The challenges this year, as always, were complex and required each team to think creatively about the design of their robots so they were capable of performing the series of precise tasks required.
“Seeing the teams working so well together to deploy their robots to carry out intricate tasks has been nothing short of amazing, and our congratulations go to everyone who has taken part.
“Only one team could secure a place at nationals however and we wish Seascale Primary School the very best of luck as they go head-to-head with teams from across the country.”
Eve West, higher level teaching assistant at Seascale Primary School, said: “All of the pupils are very excited that they’ve won. They have worked so hard and have become a real team in the last few weeks.”
Maddie Sim, a member of Seascale Primary School’s winning team, said: “I feel really impressed with my team because we worked together to get this accomplished. Eventually, all that hard work paid off.”
The event in West Cumbria follows the South Cumbria finals held at Dowdales School in Barrow on March 18, which saw a team from George Romney Junior School in Dalton secure their place at the national event.
Gary McKeating, managing director of iSH, said: “This is a fun competition which aligns perfectly with our mission to inspire a pipeline of talent for robotics and advanced technology businesses here in West Cumbria, of which we have many.
“It’s wonderful to see the children excel at something which helps them to develop such valuable skills for the future.”
