Students at a school in Sudbury are getting creative in preparation for a national design competition.

The Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) has been working with Ormiston Sudbury Academy to provide professional design workshops ahead of the RSA’s nationwide Pupil Design Awards competition.

The awards involve students aged 12-17 coming up with ideas to overcome real life problems through innovative designs.

This year, students will solve design problems divided into three categories: ‘Knowing me knowing you’ – finding ways to bolster community cohesion, ‘Learning independently’ – using assistive technology to make learning easier for students with a disability, and ‘Food is not rubbish’ – helping to reduce food waste.

Isabel Collier, a Year 7 student, was involved in a project aiming to reduce food waste at the school – while Roby O’Mara, also in Year 7, focused on helping paralysed people move around the school more easily.

Caroline Wilson, Principal of Ormiston Sudbury Academy, said: “I’m so pleased that we’ve been able to offer students this opportunity to receive training and advice from professionals and experts in the design world.

“I’m very proud of how students have thrown themselves into this challenge with such drive and enthusiasm and we all look forward to seeing the students’ final entries.”

Nick Hudson, Chief Executive of Ormiston Academies Trust (OAT), said: “We’re very excited about this collaboration between the RSA and OAT, and all of the opportunities it will provide for our students. Providing opportunities for enrichment is a big priority for OAT and hugely important to help raise aspirations and broaden the horizons of all the students within our trust.”