Special Lesson for Budding Engineers at Bearsden Primary School

Youngsters at Bearsden Primary got a surprise visit from the Scottish Water team who repaired a major burst on their doorstep. 

 Engineers spent the afternoon with Primary 1 and 2 classes telling pupils how they repaired the giant old Victorian pipe which burst at the end of January on nearby Auchenhowie Road causing extensive damage to the road. 

Their teachers had tweeted how the kids had used the experience as a learning opportunity acting out different roles and how they would have carried out the repair work themselves. 

Scottish Water team Paul Duggan and Colin Cairns, and JCB driver Keith Brown spotted the tweet and decided to visit the kids for a very special playground lesson. 

The budding young engineers were thrilled to get the chance to get up close to a mini excavator, just one of the pieces of plant used to repair the real pipe. 

The team, who had been involved in the repair, talked about how they worked round the clock in the race to restore water supplies to 250,000 customers across the Greater Glasgow area and repair the damaged road as soon as possible.

Natalie Beattie Principal Teacher, said, “Many of our pupils live nearby the affected area. They each acted out a role, and learned new vocabulary such as artery, reservoir, shallow and flow. 

Our school was delighted when Scottish Water got in touch to say they would like to visit and talk to the children. It showed the children the influence their play had had and helped to bring the Play to Learn experience to life 

“Scottish Water were excellent with the children and answered every question they had.

“Thank you very much to Scottish Water for recognising and valuing the learning experience our children had. After your visit, I think we have a few budding engineers eager to get involved in the future.” 

 Paul Duggan, Customer Service Team Leader, said: “The kids were great and so inquisitive. We really enjoyed engaging with them and explaining how Scottish Water looks after the water supply.

“You never know. There may be some engineers of the future among them.

“We regularly visit schools to engage and encourage young people into STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects whatever their age.”

Scottish Water offers a wide range of Graduate programmes, Modern Apprenticeships and Foundation Apprenticeships, as well as internships across its business.

Career paths include engineering, operations, customer service, business administration and communication with the added benefit of gaining formal qualifications and earning at the same time.

These programmes play a vital role in ensuring Scottish Water can deliver excellent services into the future.