McLaren F1 STEM Workshop

On 18 June, two STEM ambassadors from McLaren F1 came to Christ’s Hospital to run a STEM workshop, giving a valuable insight into the motorsport and engineering industry, including careers, apprenticeship routes, and the workings of a leading Formula 1 team.

This was a unique opportunity for our students to explore cutting-edge technology and engineering; it was designed to inspire any of our students considering engineering as a potential career route and highlight all the opportunities available to them in their studies of maths and design. The event was the last in a series held to mark the 350th anniversary of the Royal Mathematical School at Christ’s Hospital, which has included visits from award-winning space scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock MBE, the world’s greatest living explorer, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, and charismatic, celebrity mathematician, Bobby Seagull.  

After a fascinating and informative presentation by the McLaren ambassadors, students were tasked with designing and building a nose box, which must absorb energy in the case of a head-on collision. The students were provided with the necessary materials and then in teams set about creating their nose boxes, which had to be at least 10cm high and have a loading platform. The nose boxes were tested on how well they could withstand a vertical load, with the structure that could hold the most weight being chosen as the winner. The winning team received McLaren baseball caps!

STEM is such a hugely important element of life at CH and we were thrilled that McLaren, being at the forefront of motorsport and engineering, came to inspire our students to potentially pursue engineering/aerodynamics beyond their time at CH.