31 Jul 2024

Handforth Students Design Cars Of The Future With BMW And Caddick

Year 4 students at St Benedict’s Primary School in Handforth have rounded off the school year with a special design competition with Caddick and Halliwell Jones. 

Tasked with designing the car of the future, the students took part in a design workshop with members of the team from the new development at Handforth Dean, where Caddick is building a new BMW and Mini showroom.

The children got creative learning about the future of vehicle design and put forward their ideas for what a car may look like when they will be able to drive, ten years from now.

Management teams from Halliwell Jones were brought in to select a winner, with the winning designs now printed and brought to life on Caddick’s site hoardings until completion, in September 2024, when the drawings will be showcased in BMW’s new showrooms.

Head of Business at Halliwell Jones, Andrew Connor then taught the pupils about the evolution of cars, and how sustainable vehicle design, aerodynamics and fuel choice will all play a part in the students’ first cars.

Students were also given exclusive insight to the new 61,494 sq ft, three storey car dealership neighbouring their school, with a keen focus on the new showroom facilities and how their cars of the future may look inside.

Debbie Watson, Social Value Manager at Caddick Construction Group, comments: “Running the ‘Car of the Future’ workshop with the Year 4 class at St Benedict’s Catholic Primary School was fantastic. After a presentation on how car manufacturers are looking into making cars more sustainable, we tasked the students with designing their own ‘Car of the Future’. The students were full of creativity and enthusiasm looking at ways in which materials such as fishing nets and plastic bottles could be recycled and used in car manufacturing. And who knows, we may have witnessed the future of automotive design first hand. Thank you to Andrew at Halliwell Jones Wilmslow for collaborating with us on this project.”

Andrew Connor, Head of Business at Halliwell Jones, Wilmslow, comments: "We were thrilled to collaborate with Caddick Construction and the enthusiastic Year 4 students at St Benedict's Catholic Primary School for our 'Car of the Future' workshop. It was inspiring to see the creativity and innovation from the children as they envisioned what vehicles might look like in 2034, when they will be old enough to drive. The students' designs showcased imaginative ideas about fuel, design, and materials, reflecting their excitement and forward-thinking perspectives. It was a fantastic day filled with lively discussions and incredible creativity, leaving us all excited about the future of automotive design."