Some of the UK's brightest young engineers will come together this month at the historic site of Britain's Cold War rocket programme for the climax of teh world's biggest student rocket firing competition.
More than 300 students from 32 universities will gather at the Westcott Venture Park in Aylesbury, Bucks - now a thriving hub of the UK space sector - for the final stage of Race2Space, an education initiative supported by the Government’s UK Space Agency.
Between June 25 and July 11, teams will “hot-fire” (ignite) rocket engines which they have spent the last year designing and building from scratch. The tests will take place on repurposed Cold War-era test stands, now fully modernised to support live liquid-fuel rocket engine firings.
Airborne Engineering, Protolaunch and European Astrotech are among the Westcott businesses supporting Race2Space.
Race2Space is addressing two urgent challenges threatening the UK’s space ambitions: the critical skills gap and the sector’s lack of diversity. Britain’s space sector is valued at nearly £19 billion and employs more than 52,000 people - but over half of UK space companies report critical skills shortages, with many losing top talent to overseas competitors.
The problem is being compounded by lack of diversity - less than a third (29%) of those working in the UK space sector are women, and just 34% identify as non-white.
Race2Space gives university students the opportunity to tackle complex, real-world engineering challenges that traditional academic courses rarely provide. helping to create a pipeline of “industry ready” rocket engineers.
The programme also works to build a more diverse and inclusive space sector by actively encouraging applications from underrepresented groups and universities nationwide.
Dr. Alistair John, Programme Lead for Aerospace Engineering at the University of Sheffield, and Co-founder of Race2Space said the UK space sector urgently needed a new generation of highlly skilled engineers: "There's no shortage of talent in Britain, but if the UK wants to lead in the global space race, we need more graduates with real-world, hands-on expertience.
"Race2Space gives students exciting opportunities to work on complex, real-life challenges, often for the first time, helping to create a pipeline of 'job-ready' graduates which the sector so desperately needs.
“The UK can’t afford to overlook untapped potential. With women making up just 29% of the UK space workforce and significant underrepresentation among ethnic minorities and those from disadvantaged backgrounds, the sector is missing out on a vast reservoir of talent.
“We’re working to change that by creating accessible, practical opportunities for students of all backgrounds to enter and thrive in one of the UK’s fastest-growing high-tech industries.”
ProtoLaunch, a propulsion engineering company based at Westcott, will provide students with access to professional test facilities. The company has already hired two Race2Space participants over the past two years after observing their practical and problem-solving skills.
“For us, Race2Space is better than any interview,” said Matt Escott, its founder. “We get to see students use tools, troubleshoot their own hardware and explain their engineering under pressure. It’s the ultimate testbed for talent.
“It’s so important that we give students hands-on experience. If we don’t build the talent pipeline, we’ll just keep recycling the same engineers between companies, which is not a good recipe for the innovation we need to compete in the space race.”
Andrew Ratcliffe, Chief Engineer at the UK Space Agency, said: “Race2Space is a fantastic example of how hands-on learning can equip students with the skills and confidence to contribute meaningfully to the UK’s thriving space sector.
“By supporting opportunities to design, develop and test real rocket engines, the UK Space Agency is helping bridge the gap between academic study and industrial application. This kind of practical experience is key to inspiring the next generation and helping young people from all backgrounds see a future for themselves in space.”
The competition will showcase student innovation across three propulsion categories - liquid, hybrid, and aerospike, with awards given for technical performance, team spirit and innovation.
Winners will be announced at the Race2Space Symposium at the Westcott Space Cluster on July 11, a networking event bringing together academics, government and space industry leaders.
