Northumbrian Water going full STEAM ahead for innovation event

A water company is going full steam ahead to inspire the workforce of the future.

Northumbrian Water is holding its third Innovation Festival this summer, which will champion new thinking and inventive ways to change the world.

More than 1000 places were made available for pupils at the five-day event, which returns to Newcastle Racecourse from July 8-12.

Appropriate for young people aged between eight-years-old and 21, the event will run a number of sessions that will challenge students to use skills they’ve already acquired in science, technology, engineering, art or maths (STEAM), and understand how they can be used in the workplace.

The workshops will include interactive activities, such as designing bridges using different materials and testing them to destruction, and learning how to programme a Mars rover robot explorer.

Building on the festival’s zero waste approach, older students will look at ways of fixing and re-using broken items, such as electronics, gadgets or clothing, as well as pitching ideas for ways to improve the environment.

There will also be sessions available for parents to come along, to help students identify what they like doing and explore career options.

It is all part of the company’s NWG Academy, which inspires and develops people with talent, and helps to retain knowledge in the business.

All of the sessions will be held alongside the main festival, where festival-goers will be working to come up with ideas and solutions to help tackle major social and environmental challenges.

Sophie Carvin, Northumbrian Water’s academy manager, said: “We are all really excited about Innovation Festival 2019 and the fantastic workshops and sessions we’ve got available for young people.

“Having a talent pool with appropriate skills in the North East is fundamental to the future success of our region and we’re committed to playing our part to inspire young people and share what amazing careers are available to them using STEAM.

“We want young people to walk away from our festival having had a fun time and recognising that they’re already building skills that they can use at work in the future.”