Building an Ingenious project with Street Engineers

The Street Engineers Ingenious project, run by Holborn community association, focused on engaging disadvantaged children with applied science and engineering, encouraging them to look at issues in their local area, and develop their own innovative, creative solutions and prototypes. The project ran from September 2020 through to August 2021, and supported 62 children aged 5 - 12 to engage with engineering focused projects that helped them to reimagine their worlds, learn more about what engineering is and build confidence in STEM subjects

Every half term creative STEM projects were held twice a week targeting children aged 7-12 from two local council estates. The project kicked off with half a term of sessions exploring through experiments and problem solving with an engineering mindset and looking for creative solutions to problems presented to children followed by projects identified by children.

In one of the projects, children created a Dream Street where they identified issues in the area they lived in. Thinking about what they would like to make where they live a better place, the children took into consideration the wider community's needs for making communal spaces accessible for everyone. They also thought about improving environmental factors by encouraging wildlife into the area and using environmentally friendly materials to build things.

The project wound down with three weeks of fun summer activities exploring engineering and STEM subjects with the wider community and engaged a wider audience

To find out more about the project and the journey of delivering a public engagement project through a pandemic, we caught up with project lead Hazel East.

On running a public engagement project in a pandemic 

“We had to work flexibly throughout the project due to the changing picture of the COVID-19 pandemic, which came with challenges, but also benefits. Our project was due to be based in two local estates in Holborn, London – the Bourne Estate and Tybalds Estate. Due to the pandemic, we initially began project delivery in person on Tybalds Estate, but ran a digital group for Bourne Estate children (based on the wishes of children and parents/carers). The option of both types of delivery helped us to reach a wider group of children than we had initially planned and meant that when we had to pivot to full online delivery during lockdown in early 2021, we had a strong format with which to deliver the sessions. With positive buy in from local stakeholders (tenants associations, families and children and young people) we were able to restart groups in person in May 2021 and offered a much-needed space for children to come together after the lockdown”.

On working with engineers

“Our plans to work with volunteers also got off to a slower start due to the pandemic, however through utilising the STEM Ambassadors network, alongside links with local companies and universities, we were able to meet a wide range of engineers and engineering students who wanted to take part in the project. Working digitally for the first half of the project allowed us to introduce the children to engineers from further afield than we would have been able to involve in person. They met a wide range of people from those working in aerospace, aviation and building design, to software engineers and programmers. It was initially tricky to get people to come back to sessions in person, as home working meant that people weren't based as centrally, however this changed towards the end of the project and people came in and delivered in person, as well as online activities”.

On advice for future projects

“Our main piece of advice is to be as flexible and responsive as possible. We found that with the pandemic, but also in terms of responding to the children and their interests and wishes, which shaped and changed the planning as we went through the year. The project has continued since Ingenious funding ended, albeit with a slightly broader STEM and arts focus. This widening of focus came about through conversations with the children about what they would like to do more of, and their interests. We have also been able to bring both projects to in person delivery from September 2021. The projects are currently funded to run in this format until August 2024”.