A HUNGER for online science and maths sessions has helped an entrepreneur whose business was hit by the lockdown.

Nicki Fowler founded Technology in Play for primary children in 2017 and has built up strong relationships with several York schools which host workshops and holiday camps.

Nicki had been on the brink of franchising her business to other areas of Yorkshire when classrooms closed in March.

She moved her STEM activities (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) online to help parents home educate their children.

“I completely understand and support the reasoning behind why the schools were closed. However, a part of me was devastated and worried how Technology in Play would survive without its main source of income.

“Within 24 hours of the schools closing, the team proposed moving our STEM classes online to our parents. Parents responded enthusiastically, many citing that they felt out of their depths home-educating their children, therefore, we launched TiP Live Sessions.”

Broadcasting on Zoom four times a week, the live sessions have given children the opportunity to engage with fun activities, such as space, plant cells, and the water cycle.

Popular in York, the sessions have also been enjoyed by families across Yorkshire, the south west, Scotland and Sweden.

Nicki added: “Despite the primary schools reopening, it is unlikely that we will be able to reintroduce our school-based workshops anytime soon.

“With a continued high demand for our online STEM classes, I am going to keep them as part of our regular STEM programme for the long-term as numbers are still continuing to grow which suggests that there is a hunger for online STEM classes.

“Having an online element to the TiP programme will also help us to further branch out into other areas of the UK where there are very few STEM opportunities for young children to get involved in. By expanding the TiP model into other areas of the UK, I hope we are able to encourage more children to consider careers in the STEM sector post-education.”

Before the pandemic, Technology in Play worked with 12 schools as well as ran workshops at the National Railway Museum, Yorkshire Agricultural Society and York St John University.