Young students have explored crawler robots, drone simulators, and 3D printers this British Science Week at an engineering centre.

Over 50 children visited Sellafield Ltd’s Engineering Centre of Excellence at Cleator Moor, where they discovered career prospects in the fields of robotics, artificial intelligence, and more.

The visit from Distington Community School involved seven to 11-year old's taking part in various engineering challenges.

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The pupils engaged in a range of exercises, each intended to display the range of career options within engineering.

They constructed towers from marshmallows and spaghetti, night rover robots, and paper rockets.

A drone simulator even gave some children a chance to take flight.

This school visit coincided with British Science Week, a ten-day celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) held from Friday, March 8 to Sunday, March 17.

The event aimed to spark the children's interest in STEM subjects.

Interactive activities gave students the chance to apply their scientific knowledge in a setting outside the classroom.

They were free to ask questions and learn more about a career as an engineer.

Claire O’Connor, socio-economic lead at the centre, said: "It’s always a pleasure to see the kids interacting with our team and enjoying all aspects of STEM.

"We enjoy these days just as much as they do, and we hope that the students from Distington left the centre with enthusiasm for a career in engineering.

"This is where it starts, the experiences you have at school shape your attitude and expertise for the future.

"We want to play our part in laying the foundation for the next generation of engineers and innovators."

Scarlett, a year five student, said: “There has been lots to do and I’ve really enjoyed it.

"The drone simulator was my favourite, and I managed to drive it without crashing. I’ve never done something like that before.”

Steven Bragg, year four teacher and science lead, said: "Science feeds into everyday life, and with so many STEM careers here in Cumbria we wanted to let the children see what was right on their doorstep.

"It’s been great to see them having a go at something different and they really enjoyed getting out of their comfort zone - we’d love to come back."

This visit marked the first school trip to the centre this year.

The facility frequently welcomes students, apprentices, and offers additional training to help inspire the region's future engineers.