WISE collaborated with the National Centre of Computing Education (NCCE) on an outreach focused project to provide training and resources to Computing Hubs and STEM Ambassadors across the UK.
The key to this project was using a multi-pronged approach, delivering training and resources to three key audiences – the NCCE Computing Hubs, Computing Ambassadors and girls themselves. We worked with the NCCE to deliver bespoke sessions to each of these groups.
About NCCE
The NCCE is a government-funded initiative delivered by STEM Learning. Their vision is for every child in every school in England to have a world-leading computing education. In 2024, girls made up just 17.5% of A level Computer Science entries. Improving gender equity in the subject is a priority for the NCCE, which is actioned through their ‘I Belong’ programme. This is why collaborating with WISE was important to them.
NCCE Computing Hubs
We delivered a tailored My Skills My Life training webinar for the NCCE Computing Hubs across the country. This was a one-hour long webinar covering the background to My Skills My Life, training on delivery of both the paper and online resources, and case studies on how others have used the resource. We were also able to share the My Skills My Life computing resources, designed for the Gender Balance in Computing project.
Each of the Hubs were given access to the My Skills My Life training platform, allowing them access to complete e-learning modules and download the wealth of additional resources created to support the running of sessions.
100% of attendees agreed they enjoyed the training, found it engaging and informative and would be happy to lead a workshop following the training.
“If you want an easy and fun way to open young people’s eyes to the opportunities within STEM this is the training for you.”
“Excellent resources – the quiz has huge potential for inspiring and supporting pupils. Really well presented too in an enthusiastic and approachable way.”
Computing Ambassador training
WISE supported the development and delivery of a brand-new training session aimed at Computing Ambassadors. This training built an understanding of gender imbalances within the Computing sector and provided information and practical activities to combat this.
The session was delivered initially as a pilot, to allow us to take feedback on board from attendees and NCCE colleagues, before delivering the second session which was recorded for ongoing use by NCCE for their Computing Ambassadors.
“Truly enjoyed how the session was delivered: clear on the points, with a few examples and main points backed up by research, studies, stats etc.”
Inspiring girls into computing event
In collaboration with the NCCE, WISE led a My Skills My Life session at a large-scale event for KS3 pupils. This event was held at the National STEM Learning Centre in York and welcomed girls from schools across the region. The NCCE invited ambassadors who participated in the My Skills My Life session as role models and talked to the girls about their careers.
The session also gave NCCE colleagues the opportunity to attend a session in action, to build their confidence to deliver their own sessions at future events.
After the My Skills My Life session, 100% of the girls said they had learnt new information about different computing roles and 89% said they would consider a career in computing.
“That there are so many other jobs [in computing] that don’t include coding”
“Don’t ever doubt yourself and keep going, you’re capable of more than you think”
The NCCE have since gone on to lead further sessions across the country.
“I’ve delivered My Skills My Life sessions with students from Key Stage 2 through to A Level and have been so impressed by how engaging and easy to use the resources are. They adapt seamlessly to different event formats, group sizes and session lengths. I’ve seen them spark curiosity and open conversations, particularly with girls who may not have considered computing or engineering. The sessions genuinely help students recognise their strengths and how these link to exciting STEM careers and the feedback from staff and students has been overwhelmingly positive.”
Jasmin Panayi, Project Coordinator (Student Events), National Centre for Computing Education, STEM Learning
If you’re interested in collaborating on a similar project with WISE, please email us on wise@theiet.org.