Hundreds of children to enjoy science festival thanks to Sizewell B
Sizewell B is bringing together 800 pupils from across Suffolk to celebrate science this month.
The year 7, 8 and 9 students will be treated to a spectacular science event at Snape Maltings courtesy of The Times Cheltenham Science Festival in partnership with EDF Energy.
The free ‘LabLive’ shows have amazed almost 8,500 Key Stage 3 pupils from around the UK with two hours of entertaining, inspiring and mind-expanding science since it started in 2011.
The event in Snape promises a feast of explosions, experiments and hands-on fun, courtesy of two stellar scientists Simon Watt and Suze Kundu. Simon Watt is a biologist and presenter of the award winning documentary series Inside Nature’s Giants and Suze Kundu is a Teaching Fellow in the Department of Materials at Imperial College London. Both promise to amaze and inspire the students in Science Technology Engineering and Maths subjects.
Jim Crawford, Sizewell B Station Director will open the show. Jim said: “Hosting LabLive in Suffolk is a great opportunity to inspire the next generation of scientists. We had an overwhelming response from Suffolk schools to the event which tells us that students in the county not only have an interest in STEM subjects but their teachers are looking for ways to bring the subjects to life. This event fits in well with the work we do every week in the Sizewell B visitor centre to put learning into action for students so we would encourage anyone who didn’t manage to get a ticket to this event to book and see us at Sizewell B.”
Ali Mawle, Director of Education at The Times Cheltenham Science Festival, said: “Some people can find ‘science’ daunting, but the Festival gets people engaged with science in new and exciting ways. These annual free lectures for local schools are a fantastic opportunity for us to bring the magic of The Times Cheltenham Science Festival direct to students who might not otherwise get to discover science in such exhilarating and innovative ways.”
LabLive brings all the fun of Cheltenham Science Festival to Suffolk using Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) to inspire and engage inquisitive young minds. As well as enjoying science at its most spectacular, pupils will learn more about the benefits of studying these subjects at GCSE.
The free tickets for the LabLive event were allocated within the first week of being available. Lucky schools taking part in the event include: Alde Valley, Saxmundham Free School, Thomas Mills High School, Bungay High School, Beccles Free School, Brandeston Hall, Woodbridge School, Bramfield House School and Sir John Leman High School.
Media are welcome to attend the event, which is being held on Wednesday 26th November, between 10.30am and 12.30pm in the Snape Maltings Concert Hall, if they register in advance with Marjorie Barnes in the Sizewell B press office on 01728 653378. There will be an opportunity to interview the scientists and EDF Energy at the event.
The visitor centre
Sizewell B has welcomed over 5,000 people to the power station since it opened in December 2012.
The visitor centre has recently recruited three new guides to deal with the increase in bookings for tours of the station. There is now a team of ten guides based at the Sizewell B visitor centre ready to meet schools and the general public keen to know more about how Sizewell B safely generates enough low carbon generation for over 2million homes.
The Visitor Centre will normally be open Monday-Friday from 9-4pm. The majority of the tours will be organised for schools and educational groups. However, members of the public will also be able to attend by appointment.
Visitors will be given an introductory talk about how the station operates, before being given a guided tour through selected parts of the plant. To find out more and to enquire about booking a visit, contact sizewellbtours@edf-energy.com.
ENDS