A PILOT event in York provided businesses with an insight into potential future talent and students with an opportunity to learn about local employers.

The 'Challenge-a-thon’, held in the Innovation Centre Conference Suite at York Science Park, brought together a cross-section of the city’s students and three local businesses.

Such was its success, a plan is now in progress to develop the initiative further.

Delivered in response to feedback from bioscience companies, Science City York organised the event to instigate professional interaction with students from Askham Bryan, York College and York St John University.

The three companies involved were Animalcare, a York-based specialist veterinary products company, York Instruments, which develops cutting-edge brain scanners and YorkTest, a food intolerance and allergy testing company.

The students were encouraged to choose the challenge which most appealed to them.

Animalcare challenged students to think of easier ways to medicate cats.

York Instruments got students to focus on how to create a more child-friendly brain scanning experience and YorkTest propositioned students to develop an app which combines lifestyle information with food intolerance test data.

Ian Graham, from innovation and change agency ‘VIATIC’, mediated the workshop and helped students and businesses to get the most from the event.

He said: "The event definitely saw students challenged and stretched. It was good to see them working with different people and engaging with the businesses, who were really great at helping the students understand the business contexts and the challenges they face."

Businesses interested in future involvement with this event should email Sarah Mills, marketing and events coordinator for Science City York: sarah.mills@scy.co.uk