Give your students a day inside a space design company.
Bring a team to a regional or digital heat. They will keep working together while joining students from other schools to respond to an engineering brief.
We can help you form a team if you do not have enough students.
Why enter?
Students apply science, engineering, design, communication and business thinking to one shared problem. They make decisions under time pressure, explain their ideas to judges and see how different roles contribute to a proposal. The challenge is open to students with varied interests and strengths.
Costs to
plan for
- Travel
- Families or schools cover travel to and from regional events.
- Food and drink
- Students should bring a packed lunch and plenty to drink.
Your role as the supervising adult
- Who
- Each team needs a responsible adult aged 21 or over, such as a teacher or parent.
- On site
- That adult is copied into team correspondence and must be at the venue for the full event.
- Typical day
- A regional day usually runs from about 8.30am to 8pm, although some events are shorter.
- The work
- Students do the design work; volunteer staff support the companies.
- Registration
- You will provide a responsible-adult email address at registration and a full attendance list before the event.
- Team contact
- A senior student contact can help coordinate the team’s communications.
Safeguarding
SSEF has a safeguarding policy for its events. The responsible adult is included in team correspondence and remains on site throughout the day.
Dates and venues for 2026/27
Choose a regional or digital heat for the 2026/27 season.
| Date | Heat | Venue or status |
|---|---|---|
| 26 September 2026 | Glasgow | University of Glasgow |
| 3 October 2026 | London, Royal Holloway | Royal Holloway |
| 17 October 2026 | Liverpool | University of Liverpool |
| 7 November 2026 | Oxford | Oxford Brookes University |
| 14 November 2026 | Exeter | University of Exeter |
| 14 November 2026 | Nottingham | University of Nottingham |
| 21 November 2026 | Eastbourne | Full |
| 21 November 2026 | Cardiff | University of Cardiff |
| 28 November 2026 | London, Imperial College | Full |
| 5 December 2026 | Digital | Online |
There is no Bristol heat in 2026. Teams in the area can register for Cardiff instead. Registration for each heat closes one week before that event.
The 2027 National Final will be held in March — qualifying teams will be notified of the dates and venue.
How to register
Register your interest for a regional or digital heat. You will be asked for your team size, preferred event, a responsible-adult email and a senior-student contact. SSEF then sends the event details and team information. The full attendance list is due at least one week before your heat.
Teams normally have 4–12 students in Years 10–13, with one team per institution. The London events are capped at 10 students per team. If you need help forming a team, get in touch: UKSDC can advise on recruitment or pairing smaller groups.
What to bring
- Bring
- Bring a laptop, a packed lunch and plenty to drink.
- Uniform
- School uniform is not required.
- Before travel
- Check the details for your event before travelling.
- Supervision
- The responsible adult needs to stay at the venue for the whole day.
Support for first-time schools
If your school has never entered this competition before, please get in touch with us.
We can help you form a team and provide material to promote the opportunity within your school.
Questions about taking part?
Contact the competition team for advice on team size, supervision or what the day involves.