In this episode, we continue exploring the journey of school design and technology leaders and departments as we visit and talk with staff, students, and parents at the Simon Langton Boys Grammar School in Canterbury, Kent. 

Before anyone decides this is a story of overprivileged students enjoying an experience created by money and connections, please know this is not the case. This department has been carefully crafted from the ground up with a limited budget and now has over two hundred students studying design and technology at GCSE and a mixed-gender, large, and growing sixth form.

The school has had huge success at F1 in Schools, winning the National competition, which allowed students to represent the UK in the World Finals. This, alongside other opportunities, is part of an extensive extra-curricular offer presented to Langton students. 

We recorded over a full day in school, and there was so much good content that it was impossible to edit it into one podcast, so we have decided to break this into two podcasts that will be released in close succession. 

So sit back, grab a moment or two to yourself and listen to Part One of Designed for Life, in conversation with the Simon Langton Boys Grammar School in Kent. 

We thank our sponsors, Arachne  Digital, your cyber threat intelligence platform for empowered protection. https://www.arachne.digital/

Follow The Langton Boys D&T Department on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/langtondesign/?hl=en

This is a big episode for Designed for Life, as we proudly reach number 100! We are delighted to have Dean Kamen, an American engineer, inventor, and businessman, on the show. Dean is known for his inventions of the Segway, iBOT, and Slingshot (a water purification system) and for founding what he proudly calls his greatest invention, FIRST. 

In this episode, we investigate the mindset of a serial inventor to discuss what drives a high-school student to set up a business that yields $60,000 before he finishes school and then pushes him to overcome design challenges, legislation, and the challenges posed by naysayers as he follows his belief that engineering can be a power for good. 

Chris Hatherall is the principal of Warrington UTC, a design and technology teacher, and a Design & Technology Association Trustee. Last year, he came across FIRST and set up a robotics challenge for his local primary schools, which was hugely successful. This year, the challenge has spread to more UTC's nationally and is open to primary colleagues nationally through this network. 

From small beginnings, FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Technology) has become a global challenge, with events across multiple countries and nearly three million students competing. Dean's vision was to harness the passion seen openly for sporting events held in large stadiums with hugely competitive students and turn this into one of the world's biggest and most exciting STEM activities. 

2025 is the 35th year of FIRST activities. Last year's competition saw 3,468 teams enter, including almost 87,000 students and 27,700 mentors across 28 countries, including the USA, Canada, China, and Turkey. It is an open competition open to all, and while it is truly competitive, it emphasises the need for collaboration, respect, and teamwork. 

It seems appropriate that we welcome a new sponsor to Designed for Life for our 100th episode. Welcome to Arachne.digital, who have joined the show with an offer to help schools, charities, and public institutions protect against global cyber threats. We are delighted to welcome them on board. 

So, without further ado, grab an hour to yourself and listen to Designed for Life—In Conversation with Dean Kamen and Chris Hatherall.  

https://www.experiential.bot/get-started

https://www.firstinspires.org/

To hear a seven-year-old girl's perspective on FIRST, follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igR409sJly0

[email protected]

https://www.arachne.digital/

How do you build a successful design & technology department from the ground up with an entirely new staff? What curriculum changes should you make at KS3, KS4 and KS5 to ensure you stretch and challenge what are undoubtedly very bright students? What physical changes can you make to the department's look, feel and function when the budget is tight but you want to improve how students and parents view the subject? What role can external visitors and competitions play in building a successful curriculum offer and delivery?

These are all questions that will be tackled in the latest episode of Designed for Life as we head to where Kent touches London in Orpington and talk with staff and students from Newstead Wood School - Sunday Times Schools Guide, State Secondary School of the Year, London, 2025.  

In the podcast, we talk to the Headteacher and other senior staff about the role that D&T plays in providing a broad and balanced curriculum. We also speak with Natalie Cameron, Head of Department, about her journey from this part of Kent to China and Singapore, what pulled her back to her origins, and the leadership challenge she has taken on at Newstead Wood.

We speak with students from Year 7 to Year 13 about their experience of Design & Technology, why creativity and the knowledge, skills, and personal attributes obtained within the subject are essential to them, and perhaps most importantly, why D&T is fun!

So please sit back, grab an hour to yourself, and join me as Designed for Life visits Newstead Wood School https://www.newsteadwood.co.uk/

https://www.designtechnology.org.uk/news/designed-for-life-newstead-wood-school/

In this episode, we are delighted to welcome Marisa Kurimbokus, who was announced as the IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year 2024 at the end of last year. 

In the podcast, we follow Marisa's journey from primary school, where a teacher dropped what I can only assume was a casual comment, but it is one that sticks with her to this day. Through secondary school, where Marisa describes her journey through a range of subjects, including A Level design and technology. And chauffeuring her friend to a lecture only for serendipity to step in and have other ideas. 

We first met Marisa when she was with Triumph Motorcycles. She was then a design engineer helping to organise and run the now sadly defunct Triumph Design Awards. She takes us through her career journey, which has been wide and varied, working in various sectors before arriving at her current role as Head of Engineering at Raeon. 

Finally, we discuss the recently awarded IET Young Woman Engineer of the Year accolade and how Marisa wants to use the spotlight this affords her to encourage more young women to be brave and explore a career in engineering. 

In the conversation you will hear Marisa's passion for what she does, which comes across in bucket loads. I know you will enjoy this conversation, so sit back, grab the dog for a walk or take us on your commute as you listen to Designed for Life in conversation with Marisa Kurimbokus.

https://www.raeon.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/marisa-kurimbokus-fwes-ceng-imeche/

https://youngwomenengineer.theiet.org/

In this episode, we take the podcast on the road to Arts University Bournemouth (AUB) and talk with YouTube stalwarts Brothers Make, Louise Dennis, Curator at MoDiP (Museum of Design in Plastics) and Will Strange, Senior Lecturer and Course Leader (Sustainable Design) at AUB. The podcast was recorded on February 5th in the main lecture theatre at the university with an audience comprising AUB students and lecturers and students and their D&T teacher from a local school. 

In this episode, we stray from the show's normal format as the Brothers Make take us on their journey from school to how an initial desire to "hang out together after work" has become something of a YouTube hit that now takes them worldwide as they seek to inform others on how to replicate their sustainable practices and success. 

Louise describes how an initial desire to join the army instead turned into a passion for design and museum curation. Louise brought some artefacts from the museum to the podcast, and we have included a link to photographs of these items here: https://www.designtechnology.org.uk/for-education/media-video-and-podcasts/podcasts/live-at-arts-university-bournemouth/ 

Last but not least, Will will discuss the details of an exciting new course in sustainable design that will be offered at AUB for the first time this summer. 

You will also hear questions from the audience at the end of the podcast (including one that had his teacher sitting uncomfortably as it was answered)! So sit back and enjoy Designed for Life - Live from Arts University Bournemouth.  

Growing up with a love of mathematics, Titi thought a career as a maths teacher was beckoning until a conversation with one of her sister's friends opened up the possibility of becoming an engineer. A comment that stood out for me in this conversation was her sister's friend's statement, "You don't have to love chemistry or be brilliant at it to become a chemical engineer." It's not exactly the career advice we might all expect, but it's accurate nonetheless.  

Titi is a chartered engineer with experience providing safety assurance, risk and reliability management expertise for various engineering systems and major projects in the hydrogen, energy and transportation industries. She holds a first-class undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Lagos. Nigeria and a Masters degree in Advanced Chemical Engineering (Process Systems Engineering specialisation) from Imperial College London.

Titi is passionate about promoting and changing misconceptions about the engineering profession and is always eager to contribute to efforts to celebrate engineering excellence and make engineering more accessible and appealing to people from diverse backgrounds.

In this podcast, you will hear Titi's journey from school to an engineering degree at a university in Lagos. She will discuss how she has carefully planned her career experiences to ensure she develops as a rounded engineer with experience across a range of sectors and how she is slowly learning to become more comfortable being labelled a 'role model' for future engineers.

This is a great way to start 2025 on Designed for Life, so for the first time this year, get those headphones active and listen to Designed for Life in conversation with Titi Oliyide. 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/titi-oliyide
https://engineertiti.com/

Somehow, another year has passed, and it's time to look back on Designed for Life across 2024. Over the year, we released sixteen new episodes, reached over 31,000 streams, reached new audiences in Asia and America and, most importantly, got to speak with some amazing and inspiring guests.   

In this end-of-year episode, we look back and have selected clips from a range of conversations, including fashion and textile expert Amanda Riley, AUB lecturer and modelmaker Claire Holman, Denimolite founder and designer Josh Myers, Marloe watch co-founder and designer Gordon Fraser, Pipsqueak founder and owner Nick Ford, Head of Learning and Development at UKBIC Jonty Deeley Williamson and last (but not least) Greenpower CEO Barnabas Shelbourne. 

I have tried to pick clips that stood out over the year and have hopefully combined these into a reflective podcast that epitomises our mission at the Design and Technology Association to better connect the worlds of business and education. 

So one last time in 2024, get those earbuds in, grab the dog for a walk, take us to the gym or pull up a chair and grab some 'me time' as you listen to Designed for Life wrapped 2024. 

With sincere thanks to The Edge Foundation, who first joined us in the autumn of 2024 and have assisted the podcast's journey to this stage, without your help and support, this would not have been possible.

We look forward to new adventures in 2025. 

Imagine accidentally being put off from a career in engineering by your brilliant grandfather who, without realising, made a career in the sector sound unreachable. Hepzi Rattray is a structural engineer with the global engineering company Ramboll, but for many years, she attempted to avoid following this career trajectory.

In this penultimate podcast of 2024, we follow Hepzi's journey from school, where she turned down the offer of a top private school to attend Lady Margaret's, a church-state school in Parsons Green, West London. Some unexpected AS results forced something of a rethink and pointed her towards a somewhat unique engineering degree at Glasgow University.

Even as Hepzi progressed through the course, she was still uncertain if this was the career for her. Her mind finally made up when she undertook a placement at Ramboll, and everything finally dropped into place.

In this conversation, you will hear Hepzi's passion for her work, the strong relationship between engineering and her other passion, music, and why she is determined to use her position to inspire others into the profession.

So pull up a chair, grab a drink and a mince pie (there must be one left), and enjoy Designed for Life in conversation with Structural Engineer Hepzi Rattray.  

https://www.ramboll.com/

Thanks as always go to The Edge Foundation for their unwavering support that makes this podcast possible. 

Barnabas is the CEO of The Greenpower Education Trust. This charity works with young people nationally to introduce them to using their STEM education in a very practical way to create battery-driven vehicles that then compete in regional and national heats. 

Having experienced 'Greenpower' as a teacher, headteacher, and now as CEO of the Design & Technology Association, I was desperate to get behind the scenes with its new CEO and explore the people and passion that make Greenpower so compelling to so many students (and their parents nationally).

In this podcast, we follow Barnabas through school in Surrey and a challenging home situation that at least partly defined his early years. I should warn listeners that this episode talks very frankly about depression, mental illness and suicide, so please exercise caution before listening. That said, I cannot thank Barnabas enough for his honesty in the interview; our experiences help define us and the genuine, hard-working and empathetic CEO that he is today is a result of his life experiences to date. 

We follow his journey to America, where he took time to learn about himself and found a faith that has helped to drive him since. 

He returns home to a succession of jobs that indirectly and almost accidentally lead to a career in Youth work that has recently segwayed into running Greenpower Education Trust. 

I loved this conversation, and I know you will too, so sit back, put the headphones on, pour something nice to drink and enjoy Designed for Life in conversation with Barnabas Shelbourne.

https://www.greenpower.co.uk/
https://www.hfehmind.org.uk/home/help-now/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiOGF6J-ligMV5opQBh1sIy9KEAAYAiAAEgK9JfD_BwE

In this episode, we turn to Food and Nutrition in the school curriculum and look at the challenges facing this aspect of National Curriculum education. Over the last few weeks, I have been fortunate to be introduced to Leith's Education and walked through their curriculum resources from KS1 to Post 16 (and extracurricular). These come at a cost (see below), but having seen them, I believe these are resources that every school should at least consider. See https://leiths.com/

We also discuss how Leith's has partnered with Roehampton University to create a new PGCE course aimed at increasing the number of teachers qualifying in this area over the coming years. Alongside this, there is a Level 7 course suitable for those perhaps without a degree but with life experience and other qualifications that can assist their pathway into teaching. 

Leith's Education has supplied the following information:

Leiths Education has been working with schools for over 25 years and has grown from the renowned culinary school founded by Prue Leith in 1975. Its work is all about helping schools deliver exceptional cookery teaching for children and young people of all ages.

Food education faces significant challenges with steadily reducing numbers of specialist teachers in secondary schools, few practical cookery lessons in primary schools, and insufficient facilities and equipment in many schools. To help reverse these trends, Leiths has teamed up with the University of Roehampton to introduce two new national qualifications to help fast-track the recruitment and training of food teachers.

For more information, visit https://leiths.com/explore/professional-development/

Course costs (for more details, please see Leith's Education website).

Registration Fee
Only for schools delivering the below accredited and life skills cookery courses
Leiths Education Standard Package £3,250
Accredited courses - a total of 3 visits over the duration of the course
Life Skills courses - a total of 2 visits over the duration of the course

Cookalong Courses
Per annum subscription, no limit on student numbers (no registration fee required)
Leiths Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 Curriculum £395
Leiths Key Stage 3 Curriculum £595
Leiths Co-Curricular Cookery £595

Student Assessment Fees
Payable per student, this fee covers all course-specific costs
Accredited Cookery Courses
Leiths CTH Level 3 Extended Certificate in Professional Cookery £545
Leiths CTH Level 2 Certificate in Culinary Skills £345

So sit back and enjoy Designed for Life in conversation with Maria Dunbar, Director of Education at Leith's Education. 

Thanks, as always, to the Edge Foundation for their continued support of Designed for Life.