Year 10 XL Conference: STEM Summit

24 Nov 25

Last week, we hosted our Year 10 XL Conference: The STEM Summit, bringing together students from a number of local schools, including our fellow trust members, Fairfield High School, Longdendale High School and Rayner Stephens High School.

The day began with icebreakers, warm-up activities and a welcome talk from our Head of XL Academy, Rob Murray-Green, who introduced students to the unique experience of the XL programme at Ashton and the exciting pathways available through studying STEM subjects.

Rob said:

“The Year 10 STEM XL Conference was a fantastic showcase of curiosity and creativity. The pupils’ enthusiasm for exploring science and technology was truly inspiring, and staff were impressed by the depth of engagement throughout the day. A special thank you to Martin Bryant for his insightful talk on tech start-ups - his knowledge and real-world experience added immense value to the event.”

Students then took part in a series of hands-on STEM taster sessions, giving them the chance to explore a range of fascinating and challenging topics across Computer Science, Physics and Maths. Highlights included:

  • Fibonacci’s sequence and the power of number patterns in problem-solving (Maths)
  • From atoms to black holes, exploring the extremes of the universe (Physics)
  • Coding and calculating velocity in relation to black holes (Computer Science)

A teacher from Longdendale High School shared that their students “really enjoyed themselves and left with a much clearer picture of what A-Levels in Physics, Computer Science and Maths involve.”

We were also delighted to welcome guest speaker Martin SFP Bryant, Founder of Big Revolution, author of PreSeed Now and editor of the Geekout industry newsletter. Martin shared his journey, unpacked big ideas in the world of technology, and inspired students to discover new possibilities within the world of STEM.

The conference was a brilliant day of aspiration, curiosity and discovery. By opening minds and nurturing individual talents, we continue to support our young people in exploring the endless possibilities that STEM can offer.