During the summer, a group of 15 young participants from the Baytree Centre attended an Insight Day at the King's St Thomas' Campus, where they engaged in a series of immersive learning activities.
The day featured guided tours of the School's Surgical & Interventional Engineering Lab (SIE) and the Advanced MRI Facility, as well as a careers carousel led by early careers researchers.
The Baytree Centre is a social inclusion charity based in Brixton that supports women and girls in London through personal development workshops and integration support for newly arrived migrants and refugees. The School's Public Engagement team has been working with the Centre since 2023, making this the third year of collaboration.
A day of discovery
The Insight Day offered a rare opportunity to step inside working labs and hear from passionate staff and students about their experiences. Highlights included:
- SIE lab tour and robotics demo: Participants were introduced to cutting-edge robotics research through live demonstrations led by PhD student Basma Alabdullah and Dr Dionysios Malas. They also visited the Intervention Room where they engaged in hands-on object handling activities.
- Lunch and career conversations: Over lunch, attendees connected with school researchers Dr Jyoti Mangal, Diego Fajardo Rojas, Dr Tiarna Lee, Dr Amaia Minino, and Dr Lucia Rampazzo, who shared insights into their personal scientific journeys.
- Advanced MRI imaging experience: Participants witnessed a live brain scan and explored the 7T MAGNETOM Terra MRI scanner led by Superintendent Advanced MRI Research Radiographer Pip Bridgen with Professor Tomoki Arichi. They also visited the radiofrequency (RF) lab led by Dr Özlem Ipek.
- Public Engagement panel: The Public Engagement team members Esther Osarfo-Mensah, Annie Howitt Sprent and Alice Taylor-Gee shared their diverse paths into science communication and public engagement to conclude the day.
Impact
The event proved to be a source of inspiration for attendees, many of whom expressed a newfound enthusiasm for science. One participant said 'This inspired me to pay attention to science as it can be fun' highlighting how the event shifted their perception of the subject.
Others were drawn to the diversity of career paths available, with one noting 'I was surprised by how many behind-the-scenes jobs there are in science'.
The MRI scan emerged as the overwhelming favourite activity, captivating participants and even inspiring some to consider future careers in medical imaging and related fields.
Looking ahead
The School will continue working with the Baytree Centre on various initiatives, with plans underway for a Black History Month workshop in October 2025, another Insight Day in 2026 and by welcoming members of the Baytree community to New Scientist Live later this year.
