Funding has been awarded to a University of Nottingham-led project to bring 3D printing to children and young people in hospital education in England.
The funding, which comes from a Royal Society Science Community Grant and the Julia Rausing Trust, is designed to provide greater access to STEM education for children and young people attending specialist schools due to complex health needs or long stays in hospital.
Working in collaboration with The National Association for Hospital Education (NAHE), the 3-year project will support staff working in hospital schools, MPR (medical pupil referral) units and CAMHS (Child & Adolescent Mental Health services) inpatient units. Engineers and scientists from partner universities across the country have volunteered to help to provide staff with the skills to run hands-on projects using 3D design and printing.
Sir Paul Nurse, President of the Royal Society, said: “Schools are where most people first encounter science. Practical science helps students experience the scientific process, evaluate evidence, understand uncertainty, and appreciate how science helps us understand and improve the world. We want all students to experience and be inspired by science. Embedding more practical science in schools is an important step to help build future generations of scientists and innovators, and to equip people with the scientific literacy required to be successful citizens.”
The project will initially involve 25 schools, which will each be provided with a 3D printer and a national training programme led by the University of Nottingham and support from local partner universities. The programme will run across a term through coordinated sessions built around user-centred design and culminate in a showcase event. Students will be invited to start by taking inspiration from their environment to identify product designs that could work better for them.
Professor Ruth Goodridge from the University of Nottingham is leading the project, she said: “Children and young people who spend extended periods in hospital or attend specialist schools due to complex health needs often miss out on the enriching, hands-on STEM experiences that their peers take for granted. This project will help address that gap, giving them access to inspiring 3D design and printing activities that broaden horizons, build confidence and develop valuable skills for the future. Hospital school staff tell us that illness can make a child’s world feel very small, with disrupted education, anxiety and low confidence often affecting their engagement with learning. 3D printing offers an accessible and rewarding way for students to develop new skills, solve problems and create something tangible, providing a real sense of achievement at a time when many aspects of their lives may feel beyond their control. For many of these young people, it is a chance not only to learn new skills, but also to see new possibilities for their future.”
The project is also thought to offer the potential to support cognitive rehabilitation by nurturing skills like attention, memory, sequencing, and problem-solving. The NIHR HealthTech Research Centre for Rehabilitation, led by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, is partnering with the project to explore how 3D printing technologies could contribute to children’s rehabilitation and recovery following serious illness or injury.
Stephen Deadman, from The National Association for Hospital Education (NAHE) said: “This project will provide vital skills for children unable to access traditional school, giving them some invaluable hands-on experience with specialist equipment. As well as the individual skills they will build, there are the additional benefits working together both in and between the schools that the project will provide, bringing a sense of community and shared achievement.
