Students attending Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) schools across the Black Country have once again been invited to participate in a design and construction competition initiated by the Midland Metro Alliance.
In its second year, the Midland Metro Alliance (MMA), which is working on behalf of Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) to design and delivery tramway extensions across the region, is proud to extend this opportunity to young minds, fostering creativity and collaboration. The competition, set to run throughout the spring, invites participants to envision and construct a bug hotel or to propose innovative designs for a tram stop.
Last year’s competition has been recognised by The Career & Enterprise Company for its positive outreach with SEND and AP students who frequently face additional barriers.
Oli de Botton, CEO at The Career & Enterprise Company, the national body for careers education in England, said: “It’s fantastic that the team at the Midland Metro Alliance are once again giving back to their local community to host such a wonderful competition. This initiative underscores the importance of supporting inclusive education and promoting career pathways within the local economy.”
Teams selected by their schools will compete across various age groups for trophies and prizes and come together later in the year in a joint celebration of the work undertaken by all on their designs and ideas.
Rose Rees, MMA Head of Engagement and Skills, expressed gratitude to colleagues and partners, highlighting the significance of enhancing educational experiences for SEND and AP students, saying: “Last year’s competition was an absolute highlight of our education workstream and it’s fantastic to be able to do it all again. So many colleagues from within the alliance, to partner organisations, and the schools and colleges themselves, give up an amazing amount of time to provide these enhanced educational experiences and we’re grateful for their support.”
The MMA has written directly to eligible education sites when the competition launched on 21 February 2024. Competing schools will have until 14 June 2024 to send in their entries.
Natasha Harris, Careers Lead and Guidance Practitioner at Halesbury School in Halesowen, said: “I’m really pleased that the MMA are running this competition again for our young peoples’ benefit. Some incredible memories were created in 2023 and it’s fantastic that our young people will once again be highlighting their creativity and imagination in this year’s competition.”
Angela Moore, Senior Delivery Manager for Careers Strategy at the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), added: “The project is being supported by the WMCA Careers Hub Team who are encouraging schools to participate through our network of coordinators and business volunteers and we are excited to support this summer’s celebration event again this year. WMCA are keen for more employers to come forward to offer opportunities for SEND and AP pupils across the region to help them develop their skills and learn about the possible next steps after education. It is a pleasure to work with the MMA on their superb careers outreach spearheaded by Rose Rees and the wider team and we hope that we can continue to support MMA and other employers with similar activities in the future.”
Schools have also been asked to document students’ journeys, too, via photographs, diaries and videos and the MMA will sharing these throughout spring on their social media channels. Judging is set to take place ahead of an award ceremony to take place in Wolverhampton on 25 June 2024.