GUIDING robot cars, driving around a virtual barn and making butter from scratch – it’s all in a day’s work for west Wales’ next generation of scientists and engineers.

On Thursday 16th May Valero Pembroke Refinery welcomed 20 pupils from schools across Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire for the final of its After School STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) Club.

Run in conjunction with Pembrokeshire College and Coleg Sir Gar, the day saw youngsters use their initiative to complete four creative challenges including virtual welding and computer programming.

Scores for each activity were totted up and Team Pembrokeshire – made up of pupils from Milford Haven and Haverfordwest High VC - came out on top for the second year running.

Cllr David Simpson, Leader of Pembrokeshire County Council, accepted the trophy on behalf of the county.

He said: “It was an inspiration to see the young people’s enthusiasm for the projects and to witness how they are learning skills which will be valued and utilised in the future when they are employed by the likes of Valero, Tata Steel and other industry in the area.

“I would like to thank the staff at Valero for their hard work in putting on such a successful event, and also congratulate Pembrokeshire for winning the cup once again!”

Pupils also took part in a refinery quiz with on-site engineering students, and found out more about the range of apprenticeships and career opportunities Valero offers.

Valero Public Affairs Manager Stephen Thornton said: “It was a delight to welcome pupils from across west Wales to the refinery and see them work together to achieve success.

“Our congratulations go to Pembrokeshire for holding onto the trophy, and we hope everyone who attended got a glimpse of the amazing possibilities a career in STEM can offer.

“We hope when these talented young people are deciding their options for GCSE and beyond that they choose STEM subjects and consider Valero as a potential future employer.”