Leading businesses involved in the world of science and engineering are backing an exciting new contest for schools - the KM Bright Spark Awards.

The awards - which aim to make science cool in school - went live during British Science Week at a launch event held at Discovery Park, Sandwich. In attendance were key partners of the awards including Integrated Technologies Ltd, Betteridge and Milsom, the science faculty of the University of Kent, and STEM.

Kimberley Anderson, corporate relations manager at Discovery Park, said: “We are delighted to be able to support the awards as it’s a fun and engaging way to encourage young people to take an interest in STEM subjects and it’s also extremely valuable to the schools who participate.”

She added: “We hope that the students come away with the confidence and skills they need to pursue a career in science.”

Other organisations supporting the awards include Hectic Lifestyles and Christ Church University.

The KM Bright Spark Awards are being staged to encourage collaborations of pupils using cross-curricular skills in maths, IT, science, electronics, and design and technology.

The annual awards take the form of a Dragon’s Den-style format with students invited on stage to describe their creation with the chance to win prizes. The three categories are: innovation, investigation and invention.

Finalists will be filmed in advance in school to show the detail of the project. This is screened at the event before the dragons begin their questioning of students.

Julia Williamson of the KM Charity Team, which is organising the awards, said: “What is your school doing to promote science? If pupils have a project underway using any combination of maths, science, IT and engineering skills then it’s eligible for entry into the KM Bright Spark Awards.

“Projects can be as simple as coding or as complex as a rocket – the sky’s the limit.”

To submit a nomination, visit http://www.kmcharityteam.co.uk/schools/brightspark/ and complete the simple online form before the deadline of noon on Friday, June 5.

• To find out more about becoming a dragon at the event, contact Simon Dolby on 07989 164 752 or sdolby@thekmgroup.co.uk.