STEM Workshops for Schools: How Amber Labs Invested in the Next Generation of Engineers

When Amber Labs, a London-based technology consultancy, decided to sponsor a full day of robotics and coding workshops at Lancastarian Primary School in Tottenham, they wanted to do something with real, visible impact for children in their local community. This is the story of how that day came together and what it meant for everyone in the room.

If you're a CSR, social value, or HR lead wondering whether something like this could work for your company, read on.

Why Amber Labs chose to invest in STEM workshops for schools

For Amber Labs, the decision to sponsor workshops wasn't about ticking a CSR box. It came from a clear belief: that technology has the power to open doors, but only if young people are given the chance to walk through them.

As Darcey, who led the project for Amber Labs, explains: "Our Social Value ethos is grounded in the belief that technology can democratise skills, dismantle barriers, and unlock opportunity. Many state schools in London face funding and curriculum constraints, which can restrict exposure to emerging technologies such as AI and their real-world applications."

Representation was also central to their thinking. Amber Labs made a conscious effort to include female consultants on the day, knowing that visible role models matter - particularly for girls who might not yet see themselves as future engineers.

The timing matters too. Research from UCL's landmark ASPIRES study shows that children's STEM aspirations are largely formed between the ages of 10 and 14, and that children who don't identify with STEM by the end of primary school are unlikely to change course after that. Getting into primary school classrooms isn't just nice to have: it's where the difference is made.

Why they chose Inventors & Makers to work with

Amber Labs found us the way many companies do - a Google search for providers of STEM workshops for schools locally. But what made them choose us?

Darcey puts it simply: "Your ethos and approach were immediately clear and easy to understand, which made it straightforward to gain internal sign-off from our senior leadership team. The fact that your team are all ex-teachers was particularly reassuring, and the range of workshop topics felt current, relevant, and genuinely engaging for students."

From the very first conversation, Amber Labs were able to hand over the logistics and trust us to handle everything: from planning the timetable with the school to making sure the day ran smoothly. "The process was seamless," says Darcey. "We were able to step back and trust the team to deliver."

The day itself

Dan Brearley, ICT Lead Teacher at Lancastarian, chose our Coding & Robotics workshops - their Year 5 and 6 classes hadn't had the chance to do anything like it before. Inventors & Makers worked with Dan in advance to build a timetable that covered every class across the day.

When the day arrived, the impact was immediate. Pupils who might normally have stayed quiet were asking questions. Children who found it hard to sit still channelled their energy into the tasks. Susie, the workshop leader, commented on how some stayed behind at the end of each session, too interested to talk more about what they'd been doing to go straight out to break.

Susie and Alex from Inventors & Makers with the Amber Labs engineers

The Amber Labs consultants weren't watching from the sidelines - they were fully involved. They introduced themselves, explained their jobs, and connected what they do every day to what the children were building in the room. Having so many knowledgeable adults present meant pupils got help the moment they needed it, allowing the whole class to move faster and giving every child even more hands-on coding time.

Perhaps most powerfully, one of the Amber Labs representatives actually grew up in the local area, and as Susie observed, that matters enormously for helping pupils see themselves in a STEM career one day.

What the Amber Labs consultants took away

The consultants came to give something to the pupils. They left having gained something themselves.

Doyin from Amber Labs reflected: "It was truly wonderful working with the children and watching their excitement as they discovered how to create something out of nothing. Their curiosity was contagious... Seeing their minds at work was a powerful reminder of how imaginative, inventive, and fearless young people can be when given the space to explore."

Mohammad Haris said: "I really enjoyed spending time with the Year 5 students and letting myself become a child again. Their enthusiasm for learning about robotics was refreshing and reminded me that there's so much more to life than the day-to-day routine."

Deborah added: "It was such a joy to spend time with the students, dive into hands-on activities, and help spark excitement for the next generation of robotics and coding geniuses. The brilliant workshop leaders even taught me something new about robotics that day."

The impact of the STEM workshops

Dan Brearley - the teacher from the school - gave the day 10 out of 10: "Amazing - really professionally delivered and resourced workshops which resulted in an increased enthusiasm in coding and robotics."

One of the things he appreciated in particular was, "A different voice and presence teaching the children." He even added that the day almost counted as CPD for him personally as he learnt a lot too.

Darcey from Amber Labs also scored the day 10 out of 10, and her reflection gets to the heart of why this kind of sponsorship works: "You could see the impact of the sponsorship in real-time and in a tangible way, which was great and isn't always the case."

Could your company do this?

If you're a CSR, social value, or HR lead, the good news is that a day like this is far more straightforward to organise than you might think - because at Inventors & Makers we handle everything.

• If you already have a school in mind, brilliant. Just like Amber Labs, you can bring your existing relationship and we'll take it from there, working directly with the school to plan a day that suits their pupils and your goals.

• If you don't have a school contact, no problem. We work with schools across the country and can connect you with a local school that would love to offer this kind of experience to their pupils.

From there, you have two options:

1. Send your team in - your employees join us on the day as volunteer role models, just like the Amber Labs consultants did. They get a meaningful, memorable experience and pupils get to meet people who do this for a living.

2. Leave it entirely to us - we plan and deliver everything, and send you a full impact report so you can demonstrate the difference your investment made.

Our workshops cover structures, machines, engineering, sustainable energy, coding, AI and design - all delivered by qualified, experienced, award-winning teachers. We can work with children aged 2-11 so your impact can be spread from local nurseries right up to the end of primary school.

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Whether you have a school in mind or you're starting from scratch, we'd love to help you create a day like this for children in your community.

Get in touch here.