An iodine clock made by College pupils was judged to be the best at the Salter’s Festival of Chemistry hosted by the University of East Anglia in April. It is the first time that the College has taken part and the team of four young chemists beat off competition from nineteen other schools to win the challenge of making iodine change colour after 70 seconds.

The Salters' Festivals of Chemistry are an initiative of the Salters' Institute, a charity that encourages the study of chemistry. The one-day fun events, held at universities around the country, provide the opportunity for enthusiastic students in Years 7 and 8 to spend a day in a university department, taking part in practical chemistry activities.

The “University Challenge” winners, Katie Fallen, William Thomson, Oliver Bishop and Jessica MacKenzie, were each presented with a certificate and a Salter’s alarm clock and a £100 prize was given to the Junior School. During the day, the budding chemists also cracked “The Mystery at Salty Towers” using forensic science methods and learnt about the changing role of flavours and fragrances in a lecture on “Fermenting Fish Heads to Chocolate Candles”.