School stars lead the way on Imperial visit

Schools Minister Nick Gibb visited Imperial yesterday, to mark the College hosting the first visit in the Department for Education’s Dux Scheme.

Twenty school students had a hands-on science lesson in the College’s Reach Out Lab. They were all selected by their schools to take part in the scheme which allows high achieving Year 9 students to visit a Russell Group university for the day.

The Dux initiative is funded by the Department for Education and aims to raise aspirations among talented and hard working school pupils – Dux being Latin for leader or champion. Explaining the scheme Mr Gibb said:

“Pupils and teachers from all over the country are visiting some of the UK’s best universities so pupils can experience a taste of university life and see first-hand the opportunities available. The visits are intended not only to reward achievement but also to widen horizons and raise the ambitions of pupils who might not otherwise consider applying to some of this country’s most prestigious universities.”

Mr Gibb was shown around the Reach Out Lab by Lord Winston, Imperial’s Professor of Science and Society, who champions the Lab, and Alan West, its Director.

During their visit the school pupils, from seven government maintained schools across England, donned lab coats and safety glasses to run through a series of chemistry experiments. The pupils also had a campus tour and were taken to see the College’s new £2 million carbon capture plant.

One of yesterday’s visitors was Edwin from the Forest School in Horsham. He said: “I really like science and it’s great to get the chance to do experiments using materials we wouldn’t normally be able to back at school.”

His teacher, Jane Green, added: “The really useful thing about visits like this is that they show pupils the links between the basic experiments they do at school and how science works at university level. The students are already buzzing about everything they’ve had the chance to do.”

Nationally nearly 1,500 pupils have been registered for Dux visits, with activities throughout the coming months involving all of the Russell Group universities.