STEM Learning and The STEM Hub collaborated to bring STEM automotive related challenges and informative content to an audience of nearly 60,000 families and car fans who flocked to Farnborough to visit the British Motor Show for a four day spectacular of amazing entertainment, driving experiences, technology & live shows!

A first venture at this prestigious automotive event, our stand showcased a variety of STEM industry exhibitors includng McLaren, Ricardo, Pitlane Development and STEM Ambassadors from many companies working with the STEM Hub on the Ask and Ambassador table gave career talks and brought artefacts such as a prosthetic leg and a model 3D wind tunnel, attracting around 3,500 children, parents and grandparents over four spectacular days.

Supported by around 50 STEM Ambassadors from various STEM industries including engineering, evironmental and automotive, visitors were able to gain first hand experience about STEM in a fun and engaging way. McLaren gave visitors the opportunity to see and hold some real components from their road cars. They explained what the parts were, what materials they are made from and why the company made the technical choices it did for its cars. They talked about the principles of engineering and the STEM Ambassadors explained what jobs they do at the company and how they got there.

STEM Ambassador David commented: “I really enjoyed supporting the event both in terms of the actual support on the stand and the interaction with the youngsters and the way they approached building cars from KNEX pieces. Each person had a different approach, which was fascinating and encouraging to know there are budding creative engineers out there.” Each child was presented with a certificate for their car model creation!

STEM Ambassador Keith said: “We had a constant stream of children who were all very excited to drive the robot across the race track to win the Lollipop. I spent a most enjoyable two days either programming with the kids or talking to them and their parents about the different STEM opportunities and career paths. I had a great time with the children passing on my knowledge and experience of what STEM careers offer and I have hopefully, shown that STEM careers are open to all and I encouraged a few new children to think about STEM as a potential future career.”

STEM Ambassador Ollie, Pitlane Development said: “Thank you for having me and making me feel so welcome on my first event as a STEM Ambassador. I am really looking forward to working with you more in the future and I will be keeping an eye out for the event next year. I have received a lot of interest post event and I can't wait to start helping people begin their journey into professional motorsport.”

Ricardo STEM Ambassadors were teaching young people how to make wind turbines and there were 30 min drop-in sessions for children to build something either using LEGO robots Mindstorms (technical) or try out coding using Scratch and Microbits. It was rewarding to see young people enjoying maths skills to guesstimate the distance and direction of the robot car challenge.

STEM Ambassadors supported career panel talks throughout the show helping to share their STEM knowledge and understanding with the public. STEM Ambassador Anushka, an engineer at McLaren, gave a motivating talk inspiring the public & young people about the diverse range of jobs in the automotive industry sector.

We were overwhelmed by the amazing practical approach and support all the STEM Ambassadors took, and the event would not have been the success it was without them making a difference and inspiring a new generation to learn more about future career paths within STEM industries.

This was a joint initiative between STEM Learning and The STEM Hub Central South and South East England.

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