THERE were prizes up for grabs as students from Budmouth College competed in a series of challenges run by a local technology firm.

The BAE Systems Challenge tested the ability of the pupils in STEM subjects - science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Over the course of two after school sessions, four teams of students battled for prizes like Amazon gift cards and Kindle Fires.

On the first night students had to follow specifications to produce towers made of marshmallows and spaghetti, which had to survive being blown at with a fan.

The two winning teams then returned on the second night when first they had 40 minutes to build a Lego house to a very specific briefing, and then they fought in a five-round University Challenge style quiz.

The quiz was composed of questions about maths and science, including balancing chemical equations and using Pythagoras’ theorem to calculate lengths.

The winning team won a Kindle Fire each, along with a goody bag and prizes like submarine top trumps and chocolate Lego bricks.

The team who came second place each received a £20 Amazon gift card along with a goody bag.

Student Aleesha Wilson said: “It’s been very entertaining and fun.”

“It’s definitely inspired my interests in engineering.”

Joe Pearson, a second year apprentice with BAE Systems, said: “The event is a STEM-based challenge for Year 10 students.

“It’s designed to test their aptitude for science and maths in a fun way.

“We’re running it to promote STEM and to give the students a chance to exercise their skills in a fun way.

“It’s also an assignment for higher apprentices, we get judged on our aptitude for teamwork and planning.”

The event is run by first and second year higher apprentices from BAE Systems.

The second years primarily run the event while the first years learn about how to run it.