News - Students Scramble to Compete in Scrapheap Egg Race Challenge
Students from across the Westcountry put their inventive and problem-solving skills to the test in a Scrapheap Challenge-style competition at the University of Plymouth.
Charged with creating a self-powered vehicle capable of transporting an egg along a suspended pole, the Year 11 pupils from 17 schools across Cornwall, Devon and Somerset worked in teams of four to find usable items from a pile of scrap in the centre of the room.
And by the end of the day Ilfracombe Arts College, from North Devon, had whisked away the trophy with an inventive design that completed the 12-foot course in just four seconds.
The 'HEgg Cup' event was organised by the Aimhigher Peninsula Programme, a government-funded initiative to raise awareness of Higher Education and aspiration levels of Westcountry pupils, and was run by the University of Plymouth's Science and Technology Opportunities Project (STOP). It required lateral thinking, team-building skills and aspects of science and engineering to complete the task and win the inaugural trophy, which was custom made by engineering students at South Devon College in Paignton.
The event's slogan was 'Higher education is no yolk' and included a tour of the University campus. The teams worked with Student Ambassadors (current HE students) during the day, who were there to answer any questions they had about HE and student life, from courses and clubs to money and living away from home.
Strand One Aimhigher Peninsula Programme Officer Mark White said: "We would like to say a huge "thank you" to the schools for allowing the students to participate in this event and the teachers for bringing them to the University of Plymouth, especially as it was a 150-mile round trip for the furthest schools!"
In total, 18 teams from 17 schools took part, and Ilfracombe Arts College secured the honours ahead of West Exe Technology College and Bideford College. Also taking part were Launceston College, St Cuthbert Mayne, Fowey Community College, Poltair Community School and Sports College, Holsworthy Community College, Mounts Bay School, Camborne Science and Community College, Tor Bridge High, Sir John Hunt Community College, Honiton Community College, The Axe Valley Community College, Paignton Community and Sports College, Torquay Community College, and The Taunton Academy.