We strive to be the champions of change and promote Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) within science. We don’t just do this at Winchester Science Centre but out in communities too. From building cars and rocket ships to planting herbs, here’s what our Equity, Community engagement and Outreach (ECO) team got up to over Easter.

Our team work closely with schools, children, and their families, running activities that bring the wonder of science directly to them. Community engagement activities are part of our Charity’s aim to proactively increase opportunities available for children to engage with science and the natural world.

On 2nd April, the team went to Millbrook for Good Grub Club, a free event run by the CM Foundation that encourages families to cook healthy meals together, discover budget-friendly recipes, and get involved with fun-filled activities. They led an activity that encouraged families to work together to build a car using K’nex.

The next day, on 3rd April, it was time to head to Winnall for their Holidays, Activities and Food (HAFs) programme. HAFs is a council-run programme that provides activities and a meal for children during the holidays. The team ran our Rocketship workshop where children were able to build their very own Rocketships with K’nex around a plastic bottle. It was great to see the children’s creative imaginations come to life!

Leigh Park Library was the next location for the ECO team’s Easter adventure. On 4th April, Erin, one of our science inspirers, lead a workshop all about the muscles in our bodies. Children had to identify all the muscles in the body before working out which of those muscles they could move by wiggling. There were also three activity stations exploring different muscles, a skeletal station, cardiac station and Smooth Muscle Station. They tried out challenges like using Stethoscope’s to find their heartbeats and squeezing plasticine wrapped in clingfilm through a pair of tights to simulate poo heading through the small intestine.

On 9th April, the team headed back to Leigh Park this time for a workshop about plants, led by Jordan, another of our science Inspirers. Activities included looking at moss through a microscope, mark making around the topics of ‘the sound of crunchy leaves’ and ‘the sound a worm makes when it moves’, and planting either Rosemary, Basil, or Sage to take home.

Speaking to Jordan after the workshop, he said “I enjoyed connecting children with nature through art”.

Jenny Hoppé, our Equity, Community Engagement, and Outreach Officer said: “We had such a good time out and about in Hampshire over the Easter Holidays! From rocketship building, to planting herbs, making spaghetti bolognaise and a space adventure in our mobile planetarium, we loved working alongside communities to bring some Wonderseekers fun to people who may not traditionally come to the science centre. It is a joy to engage with families and children in their local spaces, where they feel most comfortable, doing fun, interesting, exciting activities where we can explore our world together.”