Pupils rise to the challenge

EDF Energy hosted four science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) workshops for 350 12-13-year-old girls as part of a drive to encourage more girls in Scotland to pursue careers in STEM subjects.

Just one in seven people working in STEM today in the UK is a woman and the number of young women studying these subjects at further education remains consistently below boys.

At the event, girls from Grangemouth High School and Larbert High School (below) undertook hands-on challenges using electronics kits and virtual reality technology, as well as learning more about the technology behind social media.

The event finished with teams competing to invent the best gadgets that would make a positive difference to their world.

The winning team was from Grangemouth High School (above) who created the Bike Buddy – a device to help cyclists indicate and manoeuvre safely on the roads.

Laura Gallagher from Grangemouth High School said: “I think it has been absolutely fantastic. The girls are really inspired by the other women they have heard from today who are in STEM careers.”