The Dockyard Discoverers programme welcomes nearly 900 students in its first year

Back in May 2024, the Historic Chatham Dockyard launched its new programme, the “Dockyard Discoverers”, providing underprivileged children and young people in Medway access to the Dockyard’s award-winning Learning Programmes.

Ward is delighted to have the opportunity to sponsor this fantastic programme in its first year, providing each child who attended a free family pass to the Dockyard, further supporting the local community within Medway who may not have been able to visit otherwise.

Last month members of Team Ward got the chance to get involved first hand by joining a local school during their visit. With around 10 sessions on offer, from more classroom-based to creative sessions, run by experts from the Dockyard, each school can select which sessions they attend, tailored to meet their school curriculum.

On this occasion the school selected, “What’s in the Bag” and “Rope Making”. What’s in the bag is an interactive classroom-based session which gives students knowledge about different materials that would have been used in the dockyard, understanding the different properties of the materials and how they can be used for different purposes. The students then all took part in an experiment. They changed the state of a material, polymorph, by melting it to create a shape and then testing if it would sink or float. Showing how materials can be used for different purposes once the state had been changed was something that would have happened at the Dockyard.

The final session of the day introduced the students to rope making. They learnt about the history of rope making (including visiting the ropery and seeing the quarter mile long double ropewalk!), how rope was made, and the materials and machinery used. They finished the session by making rope which they were able to take back to their school.

During the day the students also had a tour of the ships and the submarine at the Dockyard.

The programme was initially launched for a year, allowing up to 900 students to benefit, with the hope to run for another year. Dockyard Discoverers has enabled these students to experience STEM learning that goes beyond the core curriculum, outside of the traditional classroom learning, something that previously wouldn’t have been possible due to the financial constraints schools often face.

Stephen Billington, Head of Lifelong Learning at Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust, comments, “We would like to thank Ward for their sponsorship of the Dockyard Discoverers Programme here at the Historic Dockyard. This funding has given young people the unique opportunity to return to the Dockyard with their families, becoming the expert guides, sharing their new knowledge and experiences following their class visit on the Discoverers Programme. Since March, students from schools across Medway have been returning with parents and siblings, guiding them around the galleries and warships on site. Ward as a local business has provided local families with this invaluable opportunity to explore the Historic Dockyard as part of their own rich heritage.”

Jess James, Marketing Manager at Ward, adds, “It was great to attend and experience two of the sessions available within the programme and see first hand how engaged and enthusiastic the students were. As a company it’s so important for us to make a difference to local communities and the Dockyard Discoverers is a fantastic example of a programme that does exactly that. It not only provides the students attending with a day of knowledge building through interactive sessions but then gives all students the ability to come back with their families to explore all aspects of the Dockyard. We’re so proud to support the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust and play a part in offering students and families this opportunity.”