Pioneer Programme Students Celebrate Success at National STEM Finals

Sally Barber / 25 June 2025 / Categories: News, General, Events

Salford City Academy Students Race to Success in National STEM Competition

This academic year, we proudly launched our Pioneer Programme, designed for students with a strong interest and aptitude in STEM subjects. Participants follow an accelerated curriculum in Maths, Science, and Technology, and enjoy a wide range of opportunities including STEM-related trips, visits, talks, and events.

A key feature of the programme is a weekly after-school enrichment session, which explores different STEM themes each year. For our Year 7 students, this enrichment takes the form of the STEM on Track programme. Thanks to the generous support of Farrat, an engineering company, we’ve been able to offer this exciting opportunity to our Pioneer students. STEM on Track, developed by Espire Education, is a unique initiative where students design, build, and race their own go-karts as part of a national schools STEM competition. Over the course of the year, students engage in hands-on learning, developing practical skills and teamwork as they construct their karts.

On Saturday 14 June, our students travelled to Northampton for the National Final, where they put their hard work to the test by racing against other schools from across the country. The day began with scrutineering and kart checks, followed by a qualifying session led by one of our four student drivers. With enthusiastic support from fellow students, staff from Salford City Academy, and representatives from Farrat, our team competed in an endurance race and secured 7th place in their group.

The event concluded with an awards ceremony, where Salford City Academy students were named ‘Learn Champions’ for achieving the highest score in the online learning component of the programme. They also earned an impressive second place nationally in the Overall Championship, which recognises excellence in learning, building, and racing.

🎥 Watch our STEM on Track journey here

Looking ahead, next year’s Pioneer students will take on a new science-based enrichment project. In Term 1, they will complete a STEM Leaders Project through the Institute of Research in Science. Term 2 will focus on an environmental science project involving tree planting and ecological analysis on the school site. In Term 3, students will explore medical science, broadening their understanding of the diverse fields within STEM.