Royal visit: Duchess of Edinburgh highlights STEM outreach charity at Science Creates

Yesterday, Science Creates welcomed HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh and Lord-Lieutenant Mrs Peaches Golding OBE to our Old Market incubator to discover more about our independent charity Science Creates Outreach and our long-term mission to support Deep Tech innovators and entrepreneurs tackling the world’s biggest challenges.

The Duchess was introduced to an array of pioneering founders and scientists from across the Science Creates ecosystem and joined an interactive STEM workshop with local primary school students, to see first-hand how the community comes together to spark young people’s curiosity in STEM.

Science Creates Outreach was founded on the belief that pushing the boundaries of scientific discovery requires diverse perspectives and talent. Operating out of The Learning Lab – a purpose-built replica of a science lab in our Old Market incubator – the charity delivers hands-on workshops, behind-the-scenes tours of working research labs and opportunities to interact with STEM professionals, empowering the next generation of innovators.

So far, it’s delivered over 150 workshops to more than 3,000 young people and directly engaged with more than 500 SEND learners.

As dedicated supporters of Science Creates Outreach, startups GenomeKey, Kelpi and Scarlet Therapeutics met with Her Royal Highness to showcase their research labs, cutting-edge technology and how they partner with the charity to design and deliver unique workshops that are directly inspired by the work they do here.

Charity Founder and Head of Outreach Charlie Proctor said: “Our charity’s mission is to build and inspire the future generation of innovators – a generation that not only needs to grow in numbers but reflect the full breadth of society, bringing together a wide range of perspectives, ideas and experiences. At this time, building a diverse scientific community to solve the world’s most pressing challenges feels more critical than ever.

“We were honoured by The Duchess’ visit today and proud to showcase the work of the charity – running hands-on science workshops and career conversations with young people – in collaboration with incredible startups who are helping build a more inclusive and innovative future.”

Head of VC Dr Catherine Fletcher added: ”Science Creates’ long-term vision to build a better future through scientific innovation can only be achieved by changing the way people think about science and entrepreneurship from a very early age. Young people are our greatest opportunity for real change – they are the ones who will come up with the groundbreaking inventions. We need to empower them now by offering opportunities to see and experience, first-hand, how science and business intersect, and how they can shape the future through both.

“Sharing that vision with Her Royal Highness today was a timely opportunity – a chance to showcase how we’re inspiring the next generation to become the scientists and entrepreneurs of tomorrow.”

The Duchess was in our Old Market incubator as part of a wider Royal visit to the city, highlighting charitable initiatives rooted in science and innovation that are driving meaningful change to shape a better future. Her Royal Highness began the day at the University of Bristol to explore its world-leading research into scar-free healing, funded by The Scar Free Foundation.

Join us in inspiring future STEM leaders and help Science Creates Outreach reach 3,000 young people annually by donating today.

Image credit: Christy Nunns