Pilot schools St Mary Redcliffe Primary School in Bristol, Ellel St John the Evangelist Church of England Primary School and Lancaster Girls’ Grammar School in Lancaster will now be joined by 20 more schools across the UK including Norton Fitzwarren Church School in Taunton; both Skerne Park Academy and Hummersknott Academy in Darlington; Caroline Chisholm School in Northampton; Smallwood Primary School in London; Christ Church, Church of England Primary School in Surrey; and Hatfield Community Free School in Hertfordshire. After being awarded government funding as part of a Smart Energy Management Innovation Competition led by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Samsung is working with partners to expand the initiative as part of its ongoing commitment to education and equipping the UK’s next generation with vital skills for the future.

Teachers and students taking part in the initiative will learn how the Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to help reduce energy consumption and the carbon footprint of their school. They will have access to a unique energy management platform that shows real-time energy usage, pricing and carbon emissions data using Samsung SmartThings and smart sensors installed throughout the school. The initiative is designed to engage schools by making their energy usage data easier to understand, potentially helping them to save thousands of pounds in energy bills.

Pupils will be actively involved by taking part in coding lessons using the micro:bit a pocket-sized codeable device originally developed in 2016 by the BBC in collaboration with partners including Samsung. Pupil micro:bits will be connected to the school’s Samsung SmartThings platform, learning to program and work on projects that collect and visualise their own sets of data. For example, they will be able to monitor and measure classroom temperature to program a light bulb to turn green when too cold, or red when it is too hot. These lessons are designed to show teachers and pupils how coding can make the school more energy efficient in a fun and engaging way.

“After the success of the pilot scheme, we are thrilled to further expand the programme, engaging more schools across the country. We are giving more pupils the chance to play an active role in adapting how their school uses energy whilst learning coding skills to control Internet of Things devices,” said Teg Dosanjh, Director of Connected Living at Samsung. “The initiative allows us to engage with more, young British talent to get them not only involved but excited about the potential that technology brings.”

Chris Skidmore the Minister of State for Energy and Clean Growth said, “This is a great example of the innovation we expect smart meters to bring and are delighted that funding from our Smart Energy Management Innovation Competition is helping to extend the Energy in Schools pilot. The initiative is a fun, interactive way of engaging our young people to reduce their school’s energy consumption and save money as a step towards achieving our goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.”

London, UK – 3^rd May 2019 –Samsung Electronics has been awarded government funding as part of a Smart Energy Innovation Competition, led by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. This funding will enable Samsung to bring the “Energy in Schools” initiative to life across the UK. The scheme, built in partnership with the Centre for Sustainable Energy, My Utility Genius Commercial and Lancaster University, aims to teach pupils how the “Internet of Things” (IoT) can help reduce their school’s energy usage and carbon footprint. It forms a part of Samsung’s ongoing commitment to education which will inspire and equip the UK’s next generation with vital skills for the future.

Today, Samsung were on site at St Mary Redcliffe Primary School in Bristol, one of the first pilot schools to take part in its Energy in Schools initiative.

St Mary Redcliffe Primary school will get access to a unique energy management system which shows real-time energy usage, pricing and carbon emissions data using the Samsung SmartThings kit and smart meter sensors installed throughout the school. The initiative is designed to engage and support school facility managers, teachers and pupils to get a better understanding of their energy consumption, and potentially save schools thousands of pounds.

As part of the initiative, pupils will be encouraged to participate in coding lessons, learn how to programme Micro:bits to collect and visualise energy and environmental data using Samsung‘s SmartThings platform. For example, pupils will be able to monitor and measure the temperature within the classroom to programme a light bulb to turn green when too cold, or red when it is too hot. The lessons will show teachers and pupils how coding can make the school more energy efficient in a fun, visual and engaging way.

“We’re really excited that this initiative will empower pupils to play an active role in adapting how their school uses energy whilst learning cutting-edge coding skills to control Internet of Things devices such as light bulbs,” said Kit Lam, Chief Innovation Officer, Samsung R&D Institute UK (SRUK). “By engaging with young people in a practical session, we’re not only demonstrating the ways technology can help measure and reduce energy consumption, but we can also help inspire the next generation of top coding talent to then go on to solve real-world problems like energy consumption and ultimately, climate change.”

As an advocate for creating equal opportunities that allow people to fulfil their true potential, Karin Smyth, MP for Bristol South attended St Mary Redcliffe Primary School to endorse the pilot scheme. “It’s great to join pupils at St Mary Redcliffe Primary School for the launch of this new initiative”, said Smyth. “One of my main focuses as MP for Bristol South is improving educational opportunity for all. Another area of ongoing concern is climate change. This partnership brings together both of these areas and helps engage young people in using technology to change the world for the better.”

The Head Teacher at St Mary Redcliffe Primary School, Marie Thomas adds, “Our children have enjoyed improved technology and opportunities to explore computing thanks to Samsung. The environmental element of the project has linked brilliantly with our sustainability topic across the school.”

For more information on the scheme, including how to sign up, visit: energyinschools.co.uk