AROUND 450 schoolchildren from across Cornwall travelled to Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Culdrose near Helston to test their design and coding skills by building Lego robots.

Organised by Cornwall Council and hosted by the Royal Navy, the FIRST Lego League South West Regional Final took place on Wednesday and Thursday (March 11 and 12) and was designed to encourage interest in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).

In the hangar of drone experts 700X Naval Air Squadron, teams from 47 schools were given a range of timed challenges for their Lego creations to complete, on a theme of archaeology. They also presented to a panel of specialists on a research project.

The three teams with the highest scores - Bishop Bronescombe Church of England School in St Austell, Porthleven Primary School and Trevithick Learning Academy in Camborne - will compete at the national finals in Harrogate later this year.

Commander Matt Turfrey, in charge of air engineering at the naval base, said: “While the current focus of Culdrose is very much on the Middle East – just this week, the squadron next door to this event deployed one of its Merlin helicopters to Cyprus to protect UK forces – we are still delighted to be able to host this event.

“As an engineer myself, it’s great to see the children having fun, enjoying themselves and learning some core skills around STEM. I’d like to think we’ve inspired a few engineers of the future.”

Councillor Hilary Frank, Cornwall Council cabinet member for Children, Schools and Families at Cornwall Council was “absolutely blown away by the creativity and talent on display”.

She added: “Watching young people work as a team, and with such passion and enthusiasm, was truly inspiring. Congratulations to everyone who took part, and huge thanks to the council’s Education Business Partnership and the Royal Navy for putting on such a fantastic event.”