Eco-minded Stratford student proves herself an Eco Innovator in national competition - The Stratford Observer

Eco-minded Stratford student proves herself an Eco Innovator in national competition

Stratford Editorial 30th Apr, 2020   0

AN ECO-MINDED student at Stratford Girls’ Grammar School was runner-up in a government-backed national schools’ competition.

Katie Phillips took part in the Eco Innovators competition – part of the government campaign ‘Engineering: Take a closer look’ – celebrating the world and wonder of engineering.

The competition offers students aged 14 to 19 a platform to share their ideas through a real-life project tackling climate change and air quality.

They were tasked with creating a design for on-street electric vehicle charge points. The design had to be innovative, iconic and user-friendly, to fit in with the streetscape of the future.




Katie, who is 18 and from Hatton, was among 1800 entries in total from 90 schools across Britain.

She produced her design in three weeks as part of her Engineering Enrichment Programme.


Stratford Girls’ Grammar School will directly benefit from Katie’s success, receiving prizes including a dual electric vehicle charge point installed at the school up to value of £3,000, an Electric Vehicle (EV)Experience hosted at the school, and an EV Simulator for pupils to find out what it is like to get behind the wheel of an EV.

Katie also personally received a Nintendo Switch.

Katie, who has been offered a place at Lancaster University, was over the moon to receive the news. She said; “I was amazed to win second place. I never expected to be placed so highly in a national competition, and it has really boosted my confidence in my own ideas and abilities.

“I think in future I will look back on this massive personal achievement and be reminded of what is possible to achieve if you just put yourself out there. I am also delighted to have won these prizes for the school, and I hope it will act as a catalyst for a more eco-friendly/conscious school environment.”

Stratford Girls’ Grammar School is also celebrating the success of another student who did well in the competition, with Charlotte Dapp taking eighth place overall.

Luke Price, the school’s Head of Design & Technology, said: “The Eco Innovators competition was a fantastic opportunity for our young engineers to engage in a creative and highly relevant technical challenge.

“Not only were we extremely pleased that two of our eight young engineers attained winning entries nationally, it has also significantly boosted the profile of engineering endeavours within our school community.”

 

Online Editions

Catch up on your local news by reading our e-editions on the Stratford Observer.

Advertising

Advertise with the Stratford Observer to reach your audience

Buy Photos

Buy photos online from the Stratford Observer newspaper.

Subscribe

Receive a weekly update to your inbox by signing up to our weekly newsletter.