The youngsters will pitch their idea in London on 21 March.

A team of talented St Helens students will be heading to London, after once again reaching the final of a national design competition which tasks students to come up with ideas to solve real-world problems.

The annual V&A Innovate National Schools Challenge, led by the Victoria and Albert Museum, had three categories available for students to enter; Adapt, Care and Connect. The ̨��swag Academy Haydock team entered the competition last year, and came away as the ‘Connect’ category winners. Team members from last year, now in Year 8, have reunited to enter this year’s competition and are also joined by some new team members from Year 7. This year, the team have opted to enter an idea for the ‘Care’ category and have been shortlisted out of 271 entries.

Their design submission this year is the ‘Care and Connect Companion’, a companion device designed to help young people with their mental health. The device aims to bridge the gaps in mental health support for children and help them to access support with agencies. The design comes after the team explored the resources and services currently available to young people in their school, as well as carrying out research within their local community and discussions with a mental health nurse. Feedback from the V&A competition judges said of the design: “This is an impressive entry that showcases exemplary group work, innovative design skills and thorough research skills.”

When asked about being shortlisted for the second time, team member Luke, said:

“After last year, we never thought we'd be picked again to go to London, especially as the competition was very tough with even more teams entering this year. 

“We are really proud that our design was shortlisted and we hope we can show the judges how much our care companion could help young people's mental health.”

Richard Weaver, Head of Design and Technology at the academy, added:

“We are thrilled once again to say our students have been recognised for their teamwork, creativity and empathetic designs. The process of researching, designing and prototyping their care companion has enabled them to consider ways in which we can all support those in the world around us who may be experiencing difficulties or challenges, and we're so pleased their dedication to helping others has been acknowledged. We couldn't be prouder of our young designers and look forward to seeing them pitch their ‘Care Companion’ to the judges at the pitching and awards day in London.”