Numbers add up for Suffolk New College students who gain multiple first places during regional maths contest

Around 40 students from four colleges took part in a regional maths competition in Ipswich.

The event was hosted by Suffolk New College (SNC) whose students got top marks, winning all three categories of the contest.

They will now go on and represent the Southeast at a national final that is taking place in Solihull this April.

The competition was created by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) and this round was sponsored by Willis Towers Watson and John Grose. (The contest is called the MEI Further education (FE) Maths Competition. All food was provided by Chefs’ Whites restaurant and was cooked by students from the college).

Billy Harden, 16, from Ipswich is on a level 1 games design course and also studies maths, He came first in the functional skills course. He said: “I’m over the moon. I’m going to the finals with an open mind.”

Lilianna Rembelska, 17, from Ipswich is on a level 2 games design course as well as maths. Lilianna said:

“We won the ‘Ein2stein’ class. When we found out I was first I was excited, happy and this has given me a boost in maths. I’m going to give it my best in the finals.”

Amelia Webb, 17, from Felixstowe is also studying games design and maths. Amelia said: “I screamed a little bit when we won as I’ve never been that great at maths. This has given me so much confidence and it will be so cool representing the Southeast.”

Sarah Stevens is the Maths Curriculum-Coordinator at Suffolk New College who organised the event. She said:

“It was a tense atmosphere and our student’s showed great maturity and competitive spirit throughout the afternoon.

“All three teams were triumphant in their individual categories, and it was a clean sweep for SNC. I will now take 12 students to the national finals in April. The competition has helped enrich the students, giving them an exceptional opportunity to showcase their maths skills. Sarah said: “It was amazing when the results were announced. Taking part in this has really lifted the spirits of the students and helped their confidence ahead of maths exams later this year.”

The MEI maths challenges were created to help boost the engagement of your post-16 level 2 students’ confidence while building on teamwork skills, with maths through a fun and supportive competition, helping them unlock their full potential.

This was the first time that this competition had been held at Suffolk New College.