Rochester Bridge Trust opens voting for £5k STEM learning competition for schools in Medway, Maidstone, Tonbridge and Malling

Voting is open for an education competition where the winner will receive £5,000.

The Rochester Bridge Trust will give the winnings to the state secondary school, college or academy in Medway, Maidstone, or Tonbridge and Malling that receives the most votes from the public.

The funding will go towards science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) learning.

Trust education manager, Caroline Chisholm, said: “We feel really strongly about the importance of inspiring and educating the next generation of civil engineers because today’s young people will be the future custodians of Rochester Bridge.

“This competition is a way of getting people talking about STEM and by making it a public vote we hope families, teachers and members of the community will get behind their school and show their support by voting for them on our website.”

To vote for a school, college or academy click here

The closing date for voting is noon on February 29.

In the event of a tie between two or more schools, the winning school will be picked at random from those with the greatest number of nominations.

The Trust, which was founded in 1399 and is the only surviving independent bridge trust that still serves its original purpose, is also offering two seperate engineering scholarships.

The scholarship is paid annually to the student, with an additional one-off cash grant being given to the school they’re at when they apply.

These scholarships are open for applications now, for students planning to study A-levels in maths and physics and/or design and technology.

Students intending to study for the IB Diploma are also eligible but must be taking a higher-level maths course.

The Rochester Bridge Trust owns and maintains the road and service bridges over the Medway at Rochester and has contributed to the cost of many other Medway crossings over the centuries.