Sandhill View Academy, Sunderland, took top spot at the final of the North East Schools Wonder Challenge.
Both the school and its winning team were awarded £500. Great Park Academy, Gosforth, took second place with Gosforth Central Middle School in third place.
Held at Northumbria University, the finalists included teams from Oxclose Community Academy, Washington, St Anthony’s Girls’ Academy, Sunderland, Thorp Academy, Ryton and Newcastle High School for Girls.
Established nearly 20 years ago, the North East Schools Wonder Challenge has been revamped over the years. In 2023, Northern Counties Builders Federation (NCBF) and Constructing Excellence North East (CENE), relaunched the challenge, which was previously led by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), Construction Industry Council and CENE.
The challenge was to design a sustainable transport system in three stages. The first, set up a company, appoint a team and identify a site to develop. The second, the generation of a company proposal. The third, a presentation to the judges. Each school was assigned a mentor, with Jake Smith, Kier and Stuart Culley, Aureos, supporting winning school, Sandhill View Academy.
At the final, the judges included Neil Ramsey, secretary director, Northern Counties Builders Federation, Stephen O’Neill, Compass Developments, Sarah Hall and Leonie Harding, BRIMS Construction, Gary Brannighan, Hodgson Sayers and Angela Carney of Carney Consultancy.
Judges involved throughout the process included Hollie Statham, Willmott Dixon, Ashleigh Coombes, Wates Group and John Nielsen, CK21.
Angela Carney, president, NCBF, said: “We face a serious skills gap within the built environment and The Wonder Challenge provides a brilliant opportunity for pupils to research the career opportunities available in construction.
“A huge well done to Sandhill View Academy, whose passion was evident throughout its participation in the challenge. They genuinely cared for the environment with their solution. They considered the history of their town and their vision was about making Sunderland a better place for all. Ultimately, the judges felt they deserved to win, particularly due to the amount of work the team did outside of school that the teacher didn’t even ask them to do, but they did off their own backs, as they were so invested in the challenge.”
Mrs K Parker, head of faculty – humanities at Sandhill View Academy, said: “I’m so proud of our pupils and the incredible effort they put into the Wonder Challenge. They approached every task with enthusiasm and really enjoyed the chance to work with industry experts. Their ideas for a sustainable transport system were creative, well thought out, and clearly reflected the depth of research they’d done. It was fantastic to see how passionate and engaged they were throughout – a real credit to themselves and the school.”
The built environment sector presented teachers with the opportunity to have a ready-made project for students, assisting them in STEM subjects but also geography, design and English.
The scheme highlighted the diverse opportunities within the built environment, involving team work, design, presentation skills and report production.
A show of force from organisations within the built environment supported and sponsored the initiative. They included, Northern Counties Builders Federation, Constructing Excellence North East, Carney Consultancy, AtkinsRealis, Identity Consult, believe housing, Architects Group, Esh Construction, K2 Construction Management, McGhee Management, Aureos, Compass Developments, Port of Tyne, Kier, Tilbury Douglas, Mott MacDonald Bentley, Applebridge Family, Seymour Civil Engineering, Sir Robert McAlpine, Clyde & Co.