Education
We are a key provider and coordinator of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education activities and support in Essex. These are for students at school and home, and are designed to both stimulate an interest in STEM and to open possible career paths.
» See upcoming CSES events for schools, children and families
Including our flagship annual TEXPO, projects and online competitions throughout the year.
Out-of-school clubs, masterclasses and projects to enhance learning with fun, practical activities.
Financial and in-kind support for your STEM Club, project or activity at school.
Interactive conferences attended by students, industry partners and the public sector.
A FREE annual CSES/ARU lecture from a high-profile speaker, open to all schools.
Careers guidance, STE(A)M activities, ideas and other material for all ages both in school and at home.
Take inspiration from what others have been getting up to.
Talk to us about dedicated support, resources, projects and competitions for your school.
By Bob Easby, Westcliff High School for Boys
I first attended a Faraday Challenge with a group of Year 8 students from Westcliff High School for Boys on a cold January day in 2012. I was initially impressed at how a school hall, full of 36 excited 13-year-olds suddenly fell silent when the Faraday presenters began describing the day's challenge. The mood hardly changed with all the teams working diligently in, what for 13-year-olds, seemed to be total silence for the whole day. The boys were so enthusiastic on the way back to Westcliff that I resolved to try to host the event the following year.
Find out more from the IET website
Faraday Challenge Days are one-day STEM activities developed by the IET for six teams of six students aged 12-13 years for secondary schools, and also available for self-delivery in primary schools. The challenge days take place over approximately a six month period at schools throughout the UK.
Read more: Should I host the IET Faraday Challenge at my school?
Should I Consider Engineering?
Find out more about what life in an engineering related career is like - and why you might like to work in an engineering company yourself.
Engineering. Sounds pretty dull doesn't it? That is until you start working in engineering. I am now a graduate in electronic engineering, and below I'll try to tell you how I managed to get a job that lets me work on some pretty awesome military equipment (don't ask I can't you...), travel round the world and get paid a good amount of money for it!
I have been to two Engineering Our Future lectures hosted by CSES at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford. I feel that these have both been very worthwhile in informing the career path that I would like to choose due to the wide variety of topics covered by the courses. The presence of company exhibits allowed me to see what the companies actually do in a far more tangible way than through the abstract descriptions on their websites.
The lectures were both informative and interesting, highlighting the practical uses of the engineering that they use. The lecturers have all been very knowledgeable and have related to the audience well. To summarise, I would highly recommend these lectures for anyone who is looking to find out more about a career in Engineering.
These lectures provide a great insight to what technologies are up and coming as they are presented by the engineers who are working on such technologies. Many of these are at the cutting edge and provide an insight into what we will be engineering ten years into the future. As well as providing lectures the Engineering our Future events also welcome stands from local engineering companies to exhibit their current projects and also to provide information into how they got involved with engineering and how you could also become involved.
By James, Year 12
I have been fortunate enough to be able to attend two courses with the Smallpeice Trust. Each was an incredibly informative insight into the world of engineering, and they have together helped me in choosing my path through Sixth Form - guiding my options choices - and in cementing my desire to pursue a career in engineering. During these courses, I had opportunities to speak to many professional engineers, across varied disciplines of engineering, and was fortunate enough to be able to visit a Power Station, along with a Gas Turbine Station - both on a course sponsored by National Grid. These were fascinating experiences, visiting sites which would regularly not be open to the general public.