PUPILS from Malmesbury School have been showing off their skills, designing problem-solving products for the home in a workshop at Dyson's new Demo retail space on London's Oxford Street.

The pupils worked in teams to sketch out their ideas before making a prototype from parts of Dyson machines with the objective of changing young people's perceptions of engineering.

Orlando Luscombe, 13, whose team made a drone pollinator, said: "I really enjoyed the engineering workshop. We got to come up with our own ideas about how to solve problems – it was really fun."

The workshop, which involved 20 pupils from Malmesbury, is the first of six taking place before October 18, part of the Dyson Foundation's programme to support young and local people in becoming engineers.

Gabrielle Peers-Dent, head of science at Malmesbury School, said: "This is a brilliant opportunity for our students. Not only do they get an insight into engineering careers, but they get to be in the inspirational surroundings of the Dyson store and learn about Dyson technology. It’s a fantastic way for them to join the dots and understand that engineers can work on exciting, high-tech products."

Malmesbury School work closely with the James Dyson Foundation to inspire their students to better themselves and become more innovative. Every year, the Foundation award a university scholarship of up to £36,000 to one A-level student at the school who intends to study an engineering-related subject, as well as supporting six students studying design and technology with £1,000 bursaries.

Head Tim Gilson said: "As a specialist maths and science school we understand the importance of these subjects as the foundation for challenging careers in science and engineering – but getting students to share our enthusiasm isn’t always easy. Our relationship with the James Dyson Foundation is invaluable; raising the profile of STEM subjects and helping to bring engineering to life."

Currently Britain is only producing 66,000 engineering graduates a year, which is an annual shortfall of 38,000, and according to research many students believe that engineering is all about fixing things in a messy and dirty environment when in reality, it is very different.