One school in the West Midlands is using their Millennium Point Grant to give back to the community. Turves Green Boys School applied for a grant for their project called ‘helping the elderly’.
Their plan was ‘to assist in making the daily lives of the elderly better and easier’ while learning STEM in the process.
Aim of the project
There are a number of retirement homes in the school’s area. The project was for students to meet with residents to find out what they needed and what the students could make for them. This would include carrying out research and designing and making the items.
Turves Green Boys School started off on simple projects such as door stops and has since moved on to more complex items such as coffee tables and seating. But ultimately, they will make whatever the residents need.
The application had asked for £1,000 to buy materials for the project. The school already owns two laser cutting machines and will also involve CAD/CAM design to complete the project.
Year 7 & Year 8 students were chosen for the project with the aim that they will go on to pick Design and Technology in their options and continue their STEM education.
Outcome of the project
Students from the school visited Millennium Point recently. They produced and delivered a presentation to the Millennium Point Trust team, explaining the process and showcasing the finished products.
Students are now doing projects in STEM that will cover Maths, Technology & Engineering, while building the name and reputation of the school in the local area. The project has also benefited the residents of the community.
Apply for a Millennium Point Grant today and watch STEM happen
Originally set to close on Friday 2nd December 2022, the STEM Grants application is now officially extended to Friday 16th December 2022 to give everyone a chance to apply this year. Over the last five years, the Millennium Point Charitable Trust has awarded over £2 million to charities, not-for-profits, community groups and schools to further STEM education.
Millennium Point STEM Grants are available from £1,000 to £20,000 to individual applicants to support science, technology, engineering & maths (STEM) education in Birmingham and the wider region.
You can apply here.
Originally set to close on Friday 2nd December 2022, the STEM Grants application is now officially extended to Friday 16th December 2022 to give everyone a chance to apply this year. Over the last five years, the Millennium Point Charitable Trust has awarded over £2 million to charities, not-for-profits, community groups and schools to further STEM education.
Millennium Point STEM Grants are available from £1,000 to £20,000 to individual applicants to support science, technology, engineering & maths (STEM) education in Birmingham and the wider region.
You can apply here.
Building the future with STEM
Over the past five years, the Millennium Point Charitable Trust has awarded over £2 million to charities, not-for-profit community groups and schools to further STEM education. Millennium Point Charitable Trust has previously seen the rewarding outcome of past projects such as ‘Breaking the Barriers to STEM’ with a fantastic STEM garden. Ahead Partnership engaged students at their Digitech Festival with inspiring guest speeches and activities from STEM industries. Ark Tindall Primary transformed an outside space into a Science Area to enhance their STEM curriculum.
Discover more about past fantastic projects here.
Available to help you, every step of the way
We want everyone applying to have the best chances of success. That’s why our fantastic Trust Team have put together some useful information on our website. If you have any questions have a look at our frequently asked questions page, you can always contact our team with any other queries. You will also find out STEM Grant Application Guidance there too. The guidance intended to assist organisations in applying for funding from the Millennium Point Trust’s STEM grants programme.
Anyone applying can also look at our latest blog with tips on applying for the Millennium Point STEM Grants.
Discover more about Millennium Point Trust
Our multi-award-winning charitable trust invests more than £4.8m each year towards furthering STEM education within the West Midlands.
Over the years we have provided funding to Scholarships, Grants and projects that benefit the region. Find out more about our Trust in our brand new brochure here.
By booking with Millennium Point you’re helping support STEM growth
Everything Millennium Point Charitable Trust achieves is made possible by the commercial activity that takes place in our landmark building. It all feeds back into the Charitable Trust, enabling it to donate and invest in STEM-related organisations, projects, and initiatives.
When booking events with Millennium Point you are widening your CSR and supporting the local region. Find our how and more about our 11 unique event spaces here.
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
STEM education has a much bigger impact on our everyday lives than you may realise. STEM isn’t just about teaching maths and science, it helps to develop a skill set that changes the way we think, act and feel.
Providing STEM education helps to shape the world we live in, through the creation and development of new technologies that help improve and simplify our everyday lives.
Championing innovation
It has often been pointed out that innovation and diversity have a strong correlation. Due to this, STEM education gives underrepresented groups the opportunity to access inspiring role models. According to STEMWomen, this makes underrepresented groups more likely to feel as though they belong to something.
Furthermore, The Royal Society published an article where it states that only 18.7% of academic staff in STEM are from ethnic minority groups, with only 1.7% being black. Improving STEM education to underrepresented groups will help increase diversity and encourage a more welcoming environment for these groups. This will also help to encourage future talent as they will see what people have achieved before them.
Providing opportunities in STEM for everyone will help to create a wider talent pool, helping to increase the chances of innovation.
STEM and its impact on the world
STEM students and professionals tend to be motivated about the impact their projects have on the world. STEM is also inclusive of people with disabilities and gives students and professionals the opportunity to be innovative and passionate about the work they produce.
However, there is still an aim to increase the opportunities STEM gives to those with disabilities. For example AccessSTEM wants to increase the number of people with disabilities completing post secondary STEM degrees and entering the STEM workforce. AccessComputing has similar goals, but is narrowed down to just the computing industry.
Why is STEM education important?
STEM education is extremely important as it helps to shape the way we think and act. Providing STEM education also increases the ambitions of young people. For example, a report by STEM learning found that before ambassadors visited a school, 80% of students wanted to be YouTuber’s, Vets, Footballers or Gamers. However, after ambassadors showed the students bigger, global projects they found that students wanted to explore more opportunities within STEM.
Furthermore, STEM are working on providing better education to help reduce the gender gap in STEM education. According to WISE, only 24% of the STEM workforce are female, meaning there is a large talent pool that is being overlooked. However, further investment in STEM education will help to close the gender gap.
For example, Girls Who Code is a non-profit organisation that’s aiming to reduce the gender gap within technology globally. The course teaches girls computer science, bravery and sisterhood. Research shows that if they carry on the way they are, they should be able to close the gender gap by 2030.
This shows that STEM education is important as it teaches students new skills, while developing how they think, feel and act, as well as working on important issues such as closing the gender gap within STEM industries.
What skills can children learn from STEM
STEM subjects can be easily adapted to the age group, size group, ability and interests of the group you’re working with. A great thing about STEM subjects is that they’re very practical and some activities can appear like games for children, making them more enjoyable.
Due to this, STEM education teaches skills such as:
- Critical thinking
- Independent learning
- Great communication and collaboration
- Digital literacy
- Problem-solving
- Creativity
- Self-reflection
Millennium Point’s impact on STEM Education
Millennium Point annually provides funding to not-for-profit organisations, schools and colleges across the West Midlands Combined Authority area.
Millennium Point also offers STEM grant, where applicants can apply for up to £20,000 for their STEM related project, depending on whether they meet eligibility criteria, as well as being able to demonstrate a measurable impact in their STEM education or career choice.
STEM grant applications are now open. Click here to apply.
Furthermore, over the past five years the Millennium Point Charitable Trust has awarded charities, not-for-profit organisations, schools and community groups over £2,100,706 to further STEM education.
Where does the money come from?
Profits from our commercial activity, goes straight into our charitable trust, allowing us to donate and invest in STEM related organisations, projects and initiatives.
To discover more about what Millennium Point has to offer, click here.
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
We’re excited to say applications for the next round of funding for projects is now open!
A project to build a fully operational light aircraft, STEM training toolkits for schools and a car engineering workshop for girls are just some of the exciting projects amongst the successful applicants in The Millennium Point Charitable Trust’s Small Grants Programme.
Grants up to £20,000 can be applied for here, you have until the 2nd December to apply, good luck!
Endless possibilities with STEM
Over the past five years, the Millennium Point Charitable Trust has awarded over £2 million to charities, not-for-profits, community groups and schools to further STEM education. Millennium Point Charitable Trust has previously seen the rewarding outcome of past projects such as ‘Breaking the Barriers to STEM’ with a fantastic STEM garden. Ahead Partnership engaged students at their Digitech Festival with inspiring guest speeches and activities from STEM industries. Ark Tindall Primary transformed an outside space into a Science Area to enhance their STEM curriculum.
Last year Millennium Point Trust saw 100 applications from schools and not-for-profit organisations all aiming to recieve a share of the grant money to better STEM education in the region.
Vanessa Currie, Head of People, Learning and Development at Millennium Point comments:
“We are pleased to announce the latest round of grant funding from the Millennium Point Charitable Trust.
The West Midlands is the largest hub for science and innovation outside of London, with the youngest population in Europe and one of the highest percentiles of STEM graduates in the UK.
With many schools being forced to cut costs and resources to deliver their curriculums, we risk seeing the skills gap widen as less children are engaged in STEM, which is why this initiative is crucial now, more than ever.”
Award-winning charity in the heart of Birmingham
All funding given by Millennium Point Charitable Trust is made possible by the commercial activity that takes place in the landmark Millennium Point building. It all feeds back into the charitable trust, enabling to be donated and invested in STEM-related organisations, projects, and initiatives.
When booking events with Millennium Point you are widening your CSR and supporting the local region. Find out how and more about our unique event spaces here.
Apply for a grant today and support the future of STEM
At Millennium Point we believe that STEM is important for the future of the region, so we are excited to see what this year’s applications bring.
The next round of applications for the 2023 grant are now open and close at 5pm on 2nd December 2022.
Since its launch in 2018, Millennium Point Charitable Trust has provided almost £400k to more than 100 projects across education, STEM-focused charities, sporting charities, and museums.
You can apply for a grant on our website here, if you need any help look at our frequently asked questions page or speak to one of our friendly Trust team.
We are delighted to announce that Hatem Kasseir from Yardley, has been named the winner of this year’s life-changing Millennium Point Charitable Trust Scholarship, earning a fully-funded degree at Birmingham City University (BCU). This degree is joint funded by Millennium Point Charitable Trust in Partnership with Birmingham City University.
How Hatem became a Scholarship winner
Hatem was currently studying an Extended Diploma in IT (Network and Security) at Solihull College and had ambitions to study Computer Science at university. Information of the Millennium Point Scholarship landed in Hatem’s inbox, where he knew straight away, he had nothing to lose by applying.
In Hatem’s application he made it clear how much winning the Scholarship would mean to him, his great passion for computers and his mission to use computing and technology to better lives as a whole. The Millennium Point Charitable Trust team were hugely impressed with Hatem’s application, and selected him along with four other finalists.
All the finalists attended an assessment day at Millennium Point, where they each presented to a panel of five judges, Hatem impressed the panel the most and was selected as the lucky winner of this year’s Scholarship, which has already helped launch the careers of seven outstanding STEM students. Hatem’s degree in Computer Science at Birmingham City University (BCU), will start in September 2022.
Hatem’s reaction to winning
Hatem was shocked and over the moon at being chosen as the winner. The Scholarship winner said “My first reaction was a bit of shock, happiness and excitement. I didn’t know what to do, I was just really happy because I’d put a lot of work and effort into it, so to get that end result was fantastic.
The message I want to give to everyone is that there’s so many opportunities out there so always go for that opportunity, never think you might not have a chance or that it’s just too far for you, always try and reach your goals, no matter how high they are and keep dreaming on.”
A few words from the CEO
Abbie Vlahakis, CEO of Millennium Point added: “When we met Hatem it was really clear from the start that he had real passion for his chosen subject of Computer Science and he was set the task of choosing a problem and how he could come up with a solution. It was really clear and well articulated and when asked about what the Scholarship would actually mean to him, it was really clear that it meant so so much.”
Identifying STEM talent
Now approaching it’s tenth year, the Millennium Point Trust Scholarship has already changed the lives of nine people from the region through their degrees, including 2017 Sagal Qodah, who has since gone on to graduate with a First Class Honours degree in Civil Engineering. She now works for Jacobs Engineering Group, showing the great paths people can take with their career, via a Millennium Point Scholarship.
Apply for the 2023 Scholarship
Each year, the Millennium Point Charitable Trust jointly funds an undergraduate degree in partnership with Birmingham City University at their Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment, which covers over 20 different courses across computing, digital technology, engineering and the built environment. We’re helping people across the region unlock their future in STEM. For more information on how to apply or get involved in the 2023 Scholarship program please, visit www.millenniumpoint.org.uk/scholarship.
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
We’re delighted to announce that we are now members of Tech She Can, which seeks to attract more women and girls into technology roles.
Our membership forms part of our wider strategy to support STEM in the region – visit our charity page to find out what else we’re up to.
Who is Tech She Can?
Tech She Can’s mission is to make sure that everyone can participate in developing technology, and for women to play an equal role in how our world works, looks, thinks, and feels. Started in 2018 Tech She Can is a programme of free learning materials, for use by teachers or parents, to inspire both boys and girls about a future career in technology.
Since 2018 Tech She Can’s membership has grown ten-fold to over 200 member organisations, all ready to collaborate, celebrate and inspire the next generation.
Find out more on their mission on their website and see how you can support.
Why did Millennium Point want to get involved?
Our vision to inspire the next generation who will shape technology, industry, and the world of tomorrow aligns with the mission of Tech She Can. As it stands only 19% of tech workforce are women. Only through making digital and tech more accessible and inclusive can we unlock the try potential of the future workforce.
Joining up with Tech She Can will further raise the visibility and accessibility of digital and tech careers with women and girls across Birmingham and the West Midlands.
We’re always on the lookout to work with STEM businesses and initiatives
Our portfolio of support for STEM education includes a wealth of projects, from organising activity days for schools to funding for scholarships at Birmingham City University. Discover more on our website to keep up to date on all the amazing things we’re up to.
We love to work with like-minded businesses and individuals to help promote STEM in Birmingham and greater West Midlands. If you think there is a way we can work together, we can’t wait to hear from you! Let’s talk.
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
To coincide with this summer’s Commonwealth Games, the Millennium Point Trust has announced the award of a £22,000 grant to Aston Villa Foundation, to help the charity broaden its schools outreach programme, which aims to engage and inspire young people to experience STEM through sport.
The project will be delivered as education activations to over 1,300 pupils at 22 different Birmingham schools, primarily within the Foundation’s target constituencies of Perry Barr, Ladywood and Erdington.
These will take place on 22 different days, providing an introductory coding session to the children, teachers and schools. It will run until the end of the Autumn Term 2022 and coincide with the start of the Commonwealth Games, as well as a post-games legacy piece of work.
Teaching core attributes of Commonwealth competitors
The school workshops will feature Commonwealth Games themes such as Athletes, Stadiums, Perry the Mascot, Sports and Events – as well as embedding core values such as resilience, working together and desire to achieve – all key attributes of Commonwealth competitors.
Paul Hughes, Schools Manager at Aston Villa Foundation, commented: “The funding from Millennium Point is greatly appreciated to allow us to be a driving force for STEM Education in Birmingham. By providing unique learning experiences, the resources and opportunities to experience technology our aim is to help and guide children to develop their skill set for an ever-advancing technological world.”
Abbie Vlahakis, CEO of Millennium Point, commented: “This project is the perfect example of why we do what we do – to promote STEM education across the region and increase the opportunities for the next generation via some of the most exciting career paths available.
“Aston Villa is the epitome of how STEM careers run throughout sport – from physiologists and nutritionists to sports equipment designers and grounds people. We hope this project will give children a small insight into the amazing opportunities that are on offer to them.”
Find out more about what we do
To find out more about grants from the Millennium Point Trust: www.millenniumpoint.org.uk/trust/grants/
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
A panel of keynote speakers which includes former 5,000m world record holder David Moorcroft OBE, Commonwealth gold medallist Adam Whitehead and Dr Emily Hoodless, Consultant Physician, head up an afternoon of networking and discovery at Millennium Point, where businesses can meet like-minded businesses and discover the exciting STEM opportunities in the world of sport.
The SciSport Showcase on July 7th, from 3.30pm to 5.30pm, forms part of a day of activity funded by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust at the landmark Millennium Point building, which is in association with the ‘United by Birmingham 2022’ programme welcoming the Commonwealth Games to Birmingham this summer.
SciSPORT – Showcasing the importance of STEM in Sport
Millennium Point’s “SciSport Showcase” will welcome more than 1,000 school children from 28 schools across the region to participate in a range of thrilling activities, workshops and talks delivered by a host of organisations and personalities from the world of science and sport.
Abbie Vlahakis, CEO of Millennium Point, commented: “This SciSport event is a perfect example of why we do what we do – to promote STEM across the region and increase the opportunities for the next generation via some of the most exciting career paths available.
“STEM careers run throughout sport – from physiologists and nutritionists to sports equipment designers and groundspeople. We hope this event will give children a small insight into the amazing opportunities that are on offer to them.”
Network with likeminded individuals
Businesses can register for the free afternoon event here by emailing [email protected]
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
Our CEO Abbie Vlahakis and members of the Millennium Point Charitable Trust were invited to King Solomon International Business School to unveil a plaque commemorating our support for their eco-friendly STEM garden.
The “Breaking The Barriers To Stem” project is a great example of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) education projects we fund in the West Midlands region. It was great to catch up with staff and pupils at King Solomon, seeing the positive impact the project has had.
(Pupils from King Solomon International Business School holding the plaque, with Abbie Vlahakis, Millennium Point CEO and Jean McLeod, Head of PSP.)
Who’s running the project?
The project is managed by a parent’s voluntary organisation in partnership with King Solomon International Business School – Birmingham’s first all-through (4-19) Christian free school, which specialises in international business and entrepreneurship. The Parent School Partnership (PSP) was established in 2015 by parents of pupils who attend the school. To this end, PSP activities have been by donation of time, gifts and resources from willing parents and community partners – and now Millennium Point.
What’s it all about?
An inner-city school in Birmingham with a high proportion of BAME (Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities) pupils, its ambition at the start of the project, was to ‘break barriers’ and increase STEM engagement across the entire pupil population, whatever their gender or ethnicity, through a series of onsite activities, workshops, clubs, as well as STEM-related off-site trips. For a lot of children at the school, this will be their only chance to experience this kind of specialist learning in addition to the national curriculum and the aim is for them to be immersed into the world of STEM; give them opportunities that they otherwise would not have to boost STEM participation and be excited about the possibilities of careers in STEM.
The PSP and school has identified gaps in the children’s exposure to STEM learning and wants to reach individuals from urban, challenged or hard to reach backgrounds by providing all of this free of charge to prevent barriers to their involvement.
The project includes the following:
- Code Club – an after-school club designed to immerse students in the world of code – HTML, Java, CSS etc.
- Eco-friendly sensory wildlife garden – designed to help students explore science in a practical way and learn about life cycles, growing, plants, climate, habitats, weather. The Code Club will create a QR code for the various plants and environments, which can be scanned to get the information about the optimum climate for growth etc.
- Equipment – for a variety of science and maths experiments, including one which will measure the carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide levels in classrooms and outside areas.
- Excursions – a range of STEM-related school trips, including Dudley Canal and Tunnel Trust; Planetarium at Thinktank; Jaguar Land Rover Wolverhampton; Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
What impact has the project made?
The project has been a breath of fresh air to the school, offering opportunities within STEM, that without the funding, would not of been possible. The garden has helped pupils explore science in a fun engaging way, developing their education around life cycles, growing plants, climate effects, habitats and weather.
It was also fantastic to hear the positive impact the “Code Club” has had on the pupils. Pupils have been immerged in the world of code, with top technical practices such as HTML, Java and CSS being learned at the school.
These skills go a long way in providing the pupils a brilliant opportunity to kickstart their career within STEM.
How the Millennium Point Charitable Trust can help you
The Millennium Point Charitable Trust is committed to supporting the growth of STEM education in the West Midlands region, through funding, resources, projects and events.
Explore what we do or get in touch to see how we can work together.
Find more interesting content from Millennium Point over at our news section, or follow us for daily updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with @MillenniumPoint. Millennium Point is a landmark public building and multi-award-winning events venue in the Eastside of Birmingham City centre. Profits from our commercial activity are invested by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust into projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and education in the West Midlands.
We’re shining a light on local STEM projects and activities as part of our objective to champion the growth of STEM and education in Birmingham and the West Midlands.
Join Tenstar and Fellowship of Gaming this half-term where kids can go do creative tasks and activities on Minecraft: Education Edition.
The event will take place on the 30th May till 1st June 2022, 10am – 2:30pm. No need to teleport to the Nether either for this event, as it will all be held completely online.
Tickets start from £25 and can be bought here.
All about Tenstar and Fellowship of Gaming
Tenstar is a fun and inclusive esports organisation that is driven by passion and desire to become a new global leader within the industry.
Fellowship of Gaming believe that education should be accessible, engaging, and all-inclusive. They use digital tools such as Minecraft: Education Edition, their tutors and educators create a digital space to learn coding, English, and graphic design.
Grab your shovel, wood planks & diamonds in Minecraft
Join Tenstar at the most exciting half-term boot camp and learn from real online creatives and gaming professionals.
Using various gaming titles including Minecraft: Education Edition their industry specialists will go through a structured learning programme designed to build confidence and develop key skills. They will guide and coach through a range of creatives tasks and activities, with live online mentors and coaches giving the out the best digital experience.
All delivered from the comfort of your own home. Zero hassles with pick-up and drop-offs, packed lunches, and interruptions to your day. The bootcamp is suitable for children 7yrs – 13yrs and loves gaming, community, learning through play and wants to be a part of a safe and inspiring environment.
About Minecraft: Education Edition
Camps, clubs & after-school programs are using Minecraft: Education Edition to engage learners in STEM and coding. It can provide creative problem-solving challenges, collaborative learning, and e-sports.
The game has features built specifically for learning environments to supports and promotes key 21st century skills that prepare students for the future workplace including creativity, problem solving and critical thinking.
Book your child’s space now and learn something brilliant this half-term
The event will take place on the 30th May till 1st June 2022, 10am – 2:30pm. Taking place virtually there is no need for drop-offs/ pick-ups. Tickets start from £25 and can be bought here.
