A team of four budding robotics engineers from Buckhurst Hill have returned from the 2026 VEX Robotics World Championships as the only UK team to receive an award in the Elementary category this year. The team put together by STEM for Kids, an after-school robotics club, attended the competition that attracts 15,000 competitors from 52 countries and won the Build Award, recognising their outstanding robot design and engineering excellence.
“To come away not just having competed, but having won a global engineering award, is extraordinary. It shows what young people can achieve with the right support and opportunities.” said Aditya Yagnik founder of STEM for Kids.
With support from The London College of Contemporary Arts (LCCA), the team were named as UK National Champions in March and travelled to St. Louis in the US to showcase their designs, remote controlled build abilities and teamwork whilst the robots competed in a series of high-energy, head-to-head challenges. The STEM for Kids team also championed the UK in the VEX Robotics World Championship opening ceremony Parade of Nations where representatives from each county were welcomed by over 10,000 people.
David McGreene, Associate Dean of Games at LCCA, said: “We see creative technology as a natural bridge into science, technology, engineering and maths and data careers, not a separate path. Achievements like this demonstrate how powerful that combination can be.”
“I am so proud that we are winners of the Build Awards at the World Robotics Championships” said Ayden (12), head of the STEM For Kids winning team.
The VEX Robotics World Championship is one of the largest and most prestigious robotics competitions in the world, bringing together students from primary school through to university level. The challenges are designed to test engineering, coding, and collaboration skills with a view to preparing students for a future in the STEM workforce.
Aditya Yagnik, Founder of STEM for Kids said: “It’s incredible that just two years after STEM For Kids was founded, we are now producing world leading teams of young engineers. Beyond the competition itself, the experience has given the students confidence and a clear sense of what a career in STEM could give them.”
The team’s successful journey to the United States represents not only a significant personal achievement for the students, but also a powerful example of how collaboration between education providers can drive meaningful impact.
