News

Girls inspired by engineering exercise in Nottingham

Exercise Sapper Cadet took place at Chetwynd Barracks in Nottingham from 22 – 24 June to give female cadets aged from 12 to 18 years an opportunity to experience the trades, capabilities and opportunities available if they were to consider a career in engineering in the future.

Cadets after successfully completing the bridge build

The event celebrated women in engineering showcasing career opportunities available to them with presentations taking place from females who already work in the industry.

Taking place over the weekend of International Women’s Day (23 June) the event also celebrated the talent and achievements of successful women who serve in the Army’s Royal Engineers.

Cadets needed to communicate well in order to succeed

Areas explored during the event included practical vehicle searches used by the Army; counter terrorist Explosive Ordnance Disposal training; water engineering (filtration and distribution); and general STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) activities.

Corporal Kate Dunscombe from the Army’s 170 Engineer Group organised the event. She said: “This event was a fantastic opportunity to showcase to young people the engineering opportunities available to them both in civilian industry and the military. The hands-on experience they got from the event really brought STEM to life and demonstrated its importance across a breadth of roles within engineering.”

One of the cadets taking part in the event was Cadet Ellie-May Bott, from Worksop detachment. She said: “I wanted to attend the engineering exercise as I would like to be able to get a taste of STEM activities and be able to expand my knowledge of the different careers available for both men and women”.

This event was the first of its kind to be organised in Nottingham and included a total of 219 cadets taking part from areas across the country.