Posted on / in 'If you were an engineer' Competition

Burnley Pupils Prove You’re Never Too Young to Engineer Change! 

“If you were an engineer, what would you do?” that’s the question answered by Burnley pupils aged 3-19. The answer? Hundreds of heartful, wacky and innovative engineering ideas which solve a problem they identified!

These pupils had taken part in a UK-wide competition, run by educational not-for-profit Primary Engineer, where they answered the question “If you were an engineer, what would you do?”. Pupils aged 3-19 are tasked with interviewing an engineer before being asked to identify a problem in the world around them and drawing and annotating a solution and adding a letter explaining why an engineer should choose to build it!

All entries are read and graded by engineering professionals, with every single pupil who takes part receiving a named and graded certificate. They are graded based on the quality of the idea and the problem, large or small, that it is solving. Shortlisted entries are then sent to exclusive judging days where the invited judges, formed from leading industry and engineering professionals, select the designs to be celebrated at 25 regional Award Ceremonies.   

The competition culminated on 13th May 2026 at Newtown Mill at The University of Lancashire in Burnley in an exciting regional public exhibition and award ceremony, where teachers, pupils, their families and industry professionals were invited to celebrate local ingenuity and create lasting memories. The shortlisted designs were displayed, and the winners and those who were highly commended were invited on stage to receive their awards, with a surprise award for the judge’s favourite at the end. 

The highly commended and winning pupils were awarded trophies and framed certificates of their ideas, with 24 pupils from schools in the Town being celebrated.  

Year 1

  • Highly Commended – Parishy K, Whittlefield Primary
  • Highly Commended – Jude R, Whittlefield Primary
  • Winner – Rupert N, Whittlefield Primary
  • Winner – Delilah A, Whittlefield Primary

Year 2

  • Highly Commended – Poppy B, Whittlefield Primary
  • Highly Commended – Leo, Whittlefield Primary
  • Winner – Ariah S, Whittlefield Primary
  • Winner – Liam E, Whittlefield Primary

Year 3

  • Highly Commended – Isma N, Heasandford Primary
  • Highly Commended – Imani K, Heasandford Primary
  • Winner – Imani S, Heasandford Primary
  • Winner – Zainab, Heasandford Primary

Year 4

  • Highly Commended – Sadie C, Whittlefield Primary
  • Highly Commended – Ali M, Heasandford Primary
  • Winner – Areesha K, Heasandford Primary
  • Winner – Yuan N, Heasandford Primary

Year 5

  • Highly Commended – Saratu, Cherry Fold Community Primary
  • Highly Commended – Abigail R, Whittlefield Primary
  • Winner – Alizza M, Heasandford Primary
  • Winner – Isma S, Heasandford Primary

Year 6

  • Highly Commended – Aroush K, Heasandford Primary
  • Highly Commended – Alfie R, Whittlefield Primary
  • Winner – Abigail M, Cherry Fold Community Primary
  • Winner – Harry C, Whittlefield Primary

While every pupil deserves a standing ovation, one particular invention captured the hearts (and stomachs) of the judging panel. Yuan, a Year 4 pupil from Heasandford Primary, walked away with the prestigious Judges Award! Yuan’s “Last Pringle-inator” solves the age-old struggle of reaching the bottom of a snack can. His design features a sturdy tower equipped with a conveyor belt and a robotic arm to deliver those elusive final chips right to your fingertips. 

The winners and highly commended pupils were cheered on by a distinguished crowd, including Councillor Afrasiab Anwar of Burnley Council, Glen Bullen from Burnley College and Joshua Lockhead from AMS Neve who presented the pupils with a trophy and a framed certificate. 

Thank you to our National and Regional partners for fully-funding this competition and helping us bringing engineering into classrooms in Burnley.

Relive the event highlight by viewing the full photo album on Facebook: Primary Engineer | Facebook

The 2026/27 Competition is Officially OPEN so get involved to experience the fun! Register for full competition access and resources here: https://leadersaward.com/resource-area-registration/

Primary Engineer Public Exhibitions and Award Ceremonies continue all over the UK through to July, with thousands of pupils engineering ideas being displayed for all to see. Find out more: https://leadersaward.com/exhibitions-and-events/