Tanks for the opportunity '“ kids explore armoured vehice on Bring Your Child To Work Day

The budding engineers joined their parents at Lockheed Martin UK for the company’s annual Bring Your Child To Work Day.

The children, aged eight to 16, took part in engineering activities throughout the day. They had to create a small car and make it go as far as possible using only the air from a balloon, and crack a laptop code and build a device to remove wires from a terminal as part of a cyber challenge.

For many, the highlight of the day was a tour of the company’s multi-million-pound manufacturing facility. The children got to sit in the back of an armoured vehicle, climb on top to see inside the turret and have a go on a training simulator. They also got to see some high-tech manufacturing and testing equipment in action.

The day was organised to create enthusiasm for STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering and maths – and show the many possibilities for STEM careers.

Deputy managing director of the Ampthill site, Jack Belcher, said: “The day was a huge success.

“The children got to see what a wide range of engineering and technology careers there are, and how exciting those careers can be.

“And, of course, it’s great for the kids to understand what their parents do at work all day, and to experience a real working environment.”

Some of the older children have already enquired about taking on formal work experience at the site.

Jo Galkowski, who took her daughter to work, said: “Mia got stuck into all the activities. It demonstrated to her why she learns things at school and how they are applied.

“In her words: ‘If I work hard at science and maths, then I can be a scientist and make really cool stuff.’

“She really enjoyed the whole day.”