The University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is leading a county-wide initiative to inspire the next generation of engineers.
As the main supporter of the Primary Engineer and Secondary Engineer Leaders Award competition for Lancashire, UCLan aims to encourage young people to look at the world around them and to find engineered solutions to common problems. In 2018 more than 37,000 children took part across the UK with even more expected this year.
The creative problem-solving and literacy competition asks pupils ‘If you were an engineer, what would you do?’. Engineers from across the region, including UCLan staff and student engineers, will be interviewed by primary and secondary school pupils to find out more about bringing their ideas to life. The children are then challenged to identify a problem, design a solution and write a letter to the engineer stating why it should be made.
This is one of the many ways in which the University has been championing engineering in the North West alongside the highly anticipated opening of UCLan's Engineering Innovation Centre (EIC).
A key part of the University’s £200 million Masterplan, the EIC is anticipated to make a step change in producing locally trained graduates in areas including aerospace, mechanical and energy technologies and engineering.
Staff, students, and companies within the region will have access to top of the range equipment including flight simulators, Formula One cars and specialist electronic labs.
