"We are very pleased that the students have been given the opportunity to see manufacturing in the real world. We are keen to inspire them to aim high and realise that a place at Cambridge is not beyond their grasp."

Twenty-three children from a Chelmsford secondary school spent a day at the IfM, having fun and learning about manufacturing engineering. The students from the specialist engineering college, Chelmer Valley High School, who are studying for their GCSEs, took part in a rocket building competition. The winning team managed to fire their rocket  50 metres into the air.

After punting on the Cam and a tour of  Cambridge colleges the students returned to the IfM to play the 'just-in-time' game – a fun session designed to teach operations management.

Suzanne Mycock, Head of Engineering at the school said: "We are very pleased that the students have been given the opportunity to see manufacturing in the real world. We are keen to inspire them to aim high and realise that a place at Cambridge is not beyond their grasp."

Student Daniel Andrews said he had enjoyed the rocket building exercise. "I enjoyed being part of a team and working out which rocket type would go best."     

• Pictured right are the leaders of the five teams taking part in the rocket building competition.