Pupils from Wycombe Abbey, one of the highest‑ranked schools in the world, were among those competing at one of the UK’s largest student robotics championships held in London this spring.

The Buckinghamshire school attended the More Than Robots™ UK Championship at the Copper Box Arena in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, joining more than 1,000 students from across the country who showcased robots they had designed, built and tested over six months.

The event marked the national final of a major student robotics programme delivered by education charity FIRST UK, bringing together teams from all four nations following a series of regional heats.

Pupils worked through two school terms on real‑world engineering challenges, supported by professional mentors from industry.

Wycombe Abbey’s involvement placed the school among a select group of teams demonstrating advanced technical and problem‑solving skills at a national level.

Organisers say the competition reflects the growing importance of robotics education as the UK faces skills shortages that are slowing the adoption of automation and new technologies.

While the UK is recognised as a global leader in robotics research, it remains bottom of the G7 when it comes to deploying robotics at scale, with economists warning this could cost the economy £144 billion in lost growth.

Industry figures show eight in ten manufacturers are currently held back by skills gaps.

The More Than Robots™ programme aims to address that challenge by introducing robotics earlier in education and connecting students directly with industry expertise. More than 200 engineers from companies including Arm and Bloomberg provided hands‑on mentoring to teams throughout the process.

The initiative places a strong emphasis on accessibility and inclusion. Almost half of all participants were girls and more than a third came from ethnically diverse backgrounds, compared with women making up just 16 per cent of the engineering workforce nationally.

Each team received reusable robotics kits, teacher training and up to £5,000 in funded STEM enrichment, ensuring schools could take part without financial barriers.

The championship took place as the government signalled a renewed focus on school enrichment and industry partnerships in its Schools White Paper published earlier this year.

Supported by the Mayor of London and a wide range of industry partners, the event highlighted how schools like Wycombe Abbey are helping to develop the future engineers and technologists Britain needs, while giving students the opportunity to apply classroom learning to complex, real‑world challenges.