Two pupils from Howwood Primary School have won first place in a major engineering contest.
Primary 6 twins Lucy and Abbie Davis were named West of Scotland champions in the Young Engineer Competition, part of this year’s Glasgow Science Festival.
They beat more than 6,700 pupils from 350 schools across the region to take the top spot.
After successfully progressing through classroom, cluster, and regional rounds, Lucy and Abbie claimed victory at the grand final of Creating Engineers 2025, held at the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow.
Throughout the competition, they had to build models of a working windmill, a roller coaster, a watermill with a bucket on a pulley system, and an ambulance with a steering mechanism.
On the day of the final, pupils were given a surprise challenge to build K’Nex designs. Lucy and Abbie impressed the judges with their teamwork, creativity, and engineering skills.
Shirley Ormond, Headteacher of Howwood Primary, said: “Lucy and Abbie have shown a natural talent for engineering and teamwork. They also worked extremely hard to practise a variety of skills and aspects of engineering which resulted in their fantastic win in the Glasgow Young Engineers Competition.
“The whole school is very proud of them — they have certainly shown how ambitious our pupils are to achieve great things.”
The winning designs from the Howwood pupils were proudly on display at the Riverside Museum in Glasgow throughout the science festival’s run in June.
The Young Engineer competition, which has been running for nearly 20 years, is open to Primary 5 and 6 pupils across the West of Scotland and aims to inspire the next generation of engineers through fun, hands-on challenges.
Councillor Emma Rodden, Convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Education and Children’s Services Policy Board, added: “This is a phenomenal achievement for Howwood Primary, and a testament to the high standard of STEM education in Renfrewshire.
“Competitions like this are vital in sparking young people’s interest in engineering and innovation, and I’m delighted to see our pupils leading the way.”
Headline photo: Howwood twins Lucy and Abbie Davis celebrate becoming West of Scotland Young Engineer champions after topping a field of over 6,700 pupils
Photo Credit: Renfrewshire Council