East Cambs Robotics is an initiative set up by a local automation engineering company, Innomech, to help inspire the next generation of young engineers. Working in line with the year-long government campaign 'Year of Engineering', Innomech are passionate about tackling the engineering skills gap.

Three local schools, including Ely College, have been provided with robotics kits to participate in the VEX EDR competition; a globally organised robotics competition with 20,000 teams across 45 countries.

A group of our students have taken up the challenge and the first robots are already underway! The first VEX East Cambs schools event, involving Ely College, Soham and Witchford is set for 10th July at Ely College. We are so excited to host or fellow East Cambs schools and partners in industry. This competition event will involve three challenges – volleyball, basketball and cube stacking. From September 2018 the teams will participate in VEX EDR 2017-18 regional competitions, with the possibility of progressing to national or even world level.

While Innomech have given our team an amazing start and will continue to provide help publicising their achievements, it will be for the team to support themselves through fundraising. Sponsorship will be the main source of income, so if any individual or company could help support this incredible opportunity for young people please get in touch with Mr A Fisher: afisher@elycollege.co.uk

You can also follow these robotics events on Twitter:

     @VEXEastCambs

Months of hard work and preparation paid off for our keen science club last weekend. Staff accompanied four students to Robocon 2018, hosted by Hills Road Sixth Form. One of the most exciting robotics competition to take place in Cambridge, Robocon 2018, was sponsored by Cheffins and included eight teams from schools across the region, putting their robotics and engineering skills to the test on the 14th and 15th April. 

The rules of the much-anticipated competition were released at the launch event in November and the teams have been busy building their robots in preparation for the two-day competition. The teams were required to demonstrate the skills of their robots within a bespoke-built arena, provided by fit-out and design company, COEL. The robots had to pick up cubes and place them in designated areas of the arena. A robot that controls a cube will earn their team one point, two points if the robot puts a cube in the designated area and five points if the cube is placed in a bucket. The team with the most points won!

Ely College student said “The competition was an amazing experience as well as an excellent opportunity to check out the sixth form and meet fellow STEM students. It's always great to see the varied and innovative approaches that other teams have used with their designs and the strategies of their robots to best complete the required tasks.” 

Teams of between 4 to 8 members from the following schools took part in Robocon 2018: Comberton Village College, Ely College, The Perse School, Collyer’s (Sussex), Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School (Herts), Hazelwick School (Crawley), Haydon School (Hillingdon), Longsands Academy (St Neots), St Peter’s School (Huntingdon), The John Warner School (Herts) and Hills Road Sixth.

We’re pleased to say that the Ely College team made us proud with their Dr Who themed robot and represented the college exceptionally well all weekend (especially in costume on the sunday!)

The winning teams were:

First Place – Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge
Second Place – The Perse School, Cambridge
Third Place – Richard Collyers College, Sussex

We’d like to encourage everyone to do their ‘big shop’ at Tescos for the next few weeks and to put the blue token into the box dedicated to Ely College!

We were thrilled to have been offered this opportunity which, could, result in either £4,000, £2,000 or £1,000 being awarded to us and our PE Dept project to “get students rowing” working in conjunction with the Isle of Ely Rowing Club.

More here:

Ely College calls out for votes to bag a share of Tesco’s bag fund

Ely College P.E department is bidding to bag a massive cash boost from the Tesco Bags of Help initiative.

Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 raised from carrier bag sales in Tesco stores awarded to local community projects.

Three groups in every Tesco region have been shortlisted to receive the cash award and shoppers are being invited to head along to Tesco stores to vote for who they think should take away the top grant.

Ely College is one of the groups on the shortlist.

They hope to run a project that aims to offer a more varied approach to physical activity within the school setting, with a greater links and focus around local sports clubs in order to ensure clear pathways for progression and retention into clubs.

Jason Coe, Curriculum Lead in Physical Education at Ely College said “The project will focus on Rowing and will aim to engage a greater number of students taking part in this unique physical activity. Ely, with the Great River Ouse running through it, has a history that we are keen to become a part of and we are looking to launch our own competitive youth team in collaboration with the well-established Ely Rowing Club.”

Voting is open in all Tesco stores throughout March and April. Customers will cast their vote using a token given to them at the check-out in store each time they shop.

Tesco’s Bags of Help project has already delivered over £43 million to more than 10,000 projects up and down the UK. Tesco customers get the chance to vote for three different groups every time they shop. Every other month, when votes are collected, three groups in each of Tesco’s regions will be awarded funding.

Alec Brown, Head of Community at Tesco, said: “We are absolutely delighted to open the voting for March and April. There are some fantastic projects on the shortlists and we can’t wait to see these come to life in hundreds of communities.”

Groundwork’s National Chief Executive, Graham Duxbury, said: “We’ve been thrilled to see the diversity of projects that have applied for funding, ranging from outdoor classrooms, sports facilities, community gardens, play areas and everything in between.

“We’re looking forward to learning the results of the customer vote and then supporting each group to bring their project to life.”

Funding is available to community groups and charities looking to fund local projects that bring benefits to communities. Anyone can nominate a project and organisations can apply online. To find out more visit www.tesco.com/bagsofhelp.

Buses are currently running. Usual allowances apply. Shoe wear will not be challenged but normal uniform rules apply. Wear your coat when travelling in and be careful on your journey. Site is clear, with the situation monitored throughout the day. All SESSION 6 and afterschool events will be cancelled for a prompt 3pm exit.

More information here:

Ely College has a flippin' good time on Pancake Day!

Pabulum will be serving pancakes with a choice of toppings in the school dining hall. Have a delicious treat to celebrate in style. Only 70p.

We will also be running an Inter House pancake flipping competition in the Technology catering classrooms. Join in the fun and win glory for your House team! 

Thursday lunchtime! PLEDGES points for competing and its going to be flippin' fun!

Ely College joins forces with Anglian Water and the RAF Youth Engagement teams to give students an insight into industry.

Students at Ely College have had their eyes opened to future career opportunities through nation-wide Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) programmes, which have included visits to the school from Anglian Water and the Royal Air Force (RAF) Youth Engagement Team.

On Wednesday 31 January Anglian Water visited Ely College Year 9 students to work through real world challenges faced when working in the public utilities sector.  Students completed the Water Supply Challenge and Lego Build Time Trials by working in small teams to design, build and test their own ideas to solve the issues at hand, putting their STEM skills and knowledge to the test.  

As part of a series of STEM days across all year groups, students were also visited in October by the RAF Youth Engagement Team. They build structurally efficient towers, investigated kinetic speed cars, explored the world of robotics and learnt basic coding. Inspired by their centenary anniversary, the RAF workshops also offered some interesting historical context to their innovative advancements in technology to inspire students to pursue a career in the service.  

Sam Craven, Science Curriculum Leader, said of these STEM partnerships, “Ely College is committed to ensuring that our students are prepared for the world of work, and that they understand the careers that can be available for them. Particularly in the case of STEM careers, they are aware of the skills and qualification they will need.

“We work with organisations like Anglian Water and the RAF Youth Engagement Team to connect with industry and provide our young people with opportunities that enable them to apply theory into practical experiences, helping them to understand that working hard during education can lead to a rewarding career further down the line.”

The dedicated STEM days build on the diverse curriculum already offered at Ely College, as the school seeks to create the next generation of digitally smart students to support the growing technology led world we live in. These active enrichment workshops allow students to simulate real life engineering missions using their design technology, maths, science and engineering skills as well as personal, learning and thinking skills.

Richard Spencer, principal of Ely College, said: “Through the experiences, projects and placements that take place in STEM programmes, our pupils can put their creative thinking into action and learn vital skills such as time management, team work and problem solving. By collaborating with partners and agencies, our students are learning more about local employers and national industry.

“We would like to say thank you to Anglian Water and the RAF Youth Engagement Team for visiting Ely College and giving our students a taste of working in these industries.”