Local school children from Wellfield Methodist & Anglican Church School, have been treated to a special STEM experience at Nelson and Colne College Sixth Form.

Nelson and Colne College Sixth Form was awarded STEM Assured® status by the New Engineering Foundation (NEF) in 2012 and has an outstanding national reputation for excellence in Science subjects. Each year, hundreds of students enrol onto its A Level and Vocational science subjects and go on to secure great success. Keen to instil a love for science into the young generation, the Science department were excited to welcome the pupils from Wellfield Primary School.

Initially planned as a stargazing event, cloudy/overcast conditions meant that the pupils instead took part in interesting science discussions ranging from ‘why the sky is blue?’, ‘life on other worlds’ and ‘what the future holds for the human race’. They then took part in a tour of the science facilities, and tutor Ste Coase demonstrated the department’s fantastic Rubens Tube and showed how to crush a drinks can using atmospheric pressure, which the pupils got really excited about. Before returning to their school, the pupils then enjoyed hot dogs, star cakes and refreshments from the College’s restaurant, Farringtons.

Janet Pay, Head Teacher at Wellfield School said, “We were thrilled to be invited to this event. The children have been learning about space in school by making their own videos and guides, and so our ‘Evening with the stars’ helped our children to consolidate their learning in a fun way. Nelson and Colne College made us very welcome and looked after us extremely well. Every member of staff that we met with from waiting in the reception area to arriving at our event and the catering staff who made the gorgeous space decorated cakes looked after us brilliantly. We are hoping that the College invite us back to an event soon and that we can continue to build on this fantastic S.T.E.M. relationship.”