The ‘School Takeover Day – Transition to Net Zero’ was held on Wednesday 19 April and is the first joint initiative between the two organisations, aimed at bridging the gap between education and the energy industry.

Hosted by Eliane Algaard - SSEN’s Director of Customer Operations - the takeover day provided 75 students, split into five groups, from the University Technical College Reading, in Berkshire with the unique opportunity to work with the distribution operator for central southern England; experiencing real-world project briefs, developing employability skills, and gaining a better understanding of jobs in a Net Zero electricity network.

Designed for Year 12 students, Eliane tasked the five groups to develop a presentation on the transition to Net Zero, with ideas on how low carbon goals could be met. In order to complete the challenge, the students were required to fully understand what net zero means, the causes of global heating, solutions to combat the increase in global temperatures, and how this impacts an electricity network.

SSEN’s Eliane Algaard said:

“This ‘School Takeover Day - Transition to Net Zero’ organised by SSEN and UTC Reading has provided an excellent opportunity for students to gain practical experience, enhance their employability skills, and develop a better understanding of the types of careers they can work; roles that will help us all meet our net zero goals through an electricity infrastructure fit for the future.

“It’s been a joy to work with these young people - to see the passion they have for making change and bringing innovative ideas for the development of our Net Zero network to life through their excellent presentations. I believe this kind of event is instrumental in preparing students for careers in industries, such as SSEN, that are actively working towards achieving Net Zero.”

At the end of the day’s development and discussion, the five best presentations, one from each of the groups, were given to all of those attending and were judged on content, creativity, teamwork and comms, sustainability and creativity.

UTC Reading’s Assistant Head Teacher, Stephanie Mitchell added:

“It was fantastic to have so many SSE volunteers onsite working with our Year 12 students. Days like this really help to bridge the gap between industry and education and are the reason that UTC’s exist.

“Not only did the students learn a lot about the transition to Net Zero, they learnt essential employability skills for their futures. A big thank you to SSEN for supporting our students.”

The presentations were so varied and exceptional that SSEN decided on two winning teams:

Faris, Mikael, Johaan, Partha, Edward and Muthaira for their Blockchain-based energy trading platform where customers can trade excess energy, alongside nuclear energy production via small modular reactors.

Thomas, Euan, Ella and Grzegorz who came up with the idea for an App which encourages customers to lower their energy consumption by providing detailed energy use information and incentives to cut back.

In addition to Finalist Certificates for the shortlisted teams, the overall winners were awarded a Winning Team certificates and have been invited to attend Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks’ Distribution Executive Committee meeting to present their award winning ideas to the committee members.

For more information on how SSEN is delivering a smarter energy system, go to Smarter Electricity - SSEN