Featured image: Credit Andrew Crowley

Sir James Dyson has just donated £19 million to his old boarding school Gresham’s in Norfolk

The famous inventor and his brother were both provided a free boarding education to Gresham’s after the death of their father, who taught Classics there. Sir James Dyson said “I am hugely grateful to Gresham’s for the enlightening and inspiring education that I enjoyed so much.”

The money will be used to build a new STEAM centre (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths), to be known as the Dyson Building and is scheduled to open in 2021.

The building will enable new approaches to teaching, encouraging project work and collaboration. Spaces will be equipped with the latest technology to ensure the highest levels of teaching; from robotics and programming, to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning. The building will also provide greatly improved opportunities for the outreach programme which Gresham’s runs with local schools.

“Engineering and science are the most fulfilling of careers, they are also vitally important to our society and economy. To prime a pipeline of young people who want to study engineering, we must inspire them at the earliest possible stage – I hope this building will do just that”, said Dyson.

In 2002 the James Dyson Foundation, Dyson’s charitable arm, was established to inspire the next generation of engineers.

Got a budding engineer or scientist in the family? Check out these fun science challenges set by the Dyson Foundation to try at home!