A Hot Tub in a Mach-E? Teenagers Get Creative at Ford’s IT Girl’s Day in Dunton

DUNTON, UK – What cool features would you like to see in future electric vehicles? This was just one of the topics schoolgirls from Essex got to explore when they came to Dunton Campus for Ford’s IT Girl’s Day recently. 

The annual event, hosted by the Enterprise Technology Team to foster diversity and inspire the next generation of women in STEM, saw 30 girls aged 12 and 13 from three local schools invited to Dunton for an immersive exercise in design thinking and innovation, complete with a VIP tour of the facility and a networking luncheon. 

This year's It Girl’s Day was organised by Jennifer Martin, Molly Moynihan, and Heather Russell, with sponsorship from Stacy Juniper, along with the support of the wider Ford Apprentices and Graduate Community at Dunton, and it empowered the girls with IT-based challenges and thought-provoking questions, that participants described as “purposeful, engaging and motivating”. 

Among the activities guests took part in were a spaghetti tower building session to challenge their critical thinking and introduce them to agile practices including iterations in lean manufacturing and software development. They also had a chance to experiment with the VR tech inside Dunton’s Innovation Hub, while the networking luncheon offered the girls more insight into the different pathways to Ford and what it’s like to work within the IT squad.

“They came up with some very creative and inventive suggestions for making electric cars more than just a means of getting from A to B, including having a hot tub in a Mach-E, installing a big screen in the back of vehicles to make long journeys more entertaining for young people, and developing park-assisting car seats for deaf drivers that vibrate to alert them when they get too close to an object,” said Heather Russell.

Stacy Juniper told @Ford: “All-in-all, it was a wonderful opportunity for young people from our community to see learning in action as a life skill rather than an arbitrary classroom activity. We truly believe that giving back means fostering these talents, and by empowering these young minds, we’re not just trying to make a positive impact, but invest in the sustainable growth of the community around Ford. We hope to continue the Ford IT Girl’s Day in the future with greater capacity and a greater impact on young girl’s opinions and motivation to pursue STEM subjects.”

IT Girl’s Day is one of 15 STEM outreach projects led by Ford Britain that have empowered over 3,500 students in 2023 alone.