Students from Ipswich secondary schools are being encouraged to to take part in a furniture-themed design challenge at Christchurch Mansion.

The event is part of the DesignLab Nation project, which seeks to inspire KS3 and KS4 DesignTech students and their teachers in partnership with the V&A museum, regional museums and creative industries.

The DesignLab Nation project featured at Ipswich Museum recently and marked the collaboration that inspired school students to learn about, design and build their very own boat.

Since September 2021, Students from Stoke High School, Northgate High School and Chantry Academy have been working with the Victoria & Albert Museum in London and local award-winning Ipswich boatbuilder Spirit Yachts, makers of the hand-built wooden yachts that featured in the James Bond films ‘Casino Royale’ and ‘No Time to Die’.

During the project, designer Liz Brandon-Jones set a design challenge for students informed by sustainability and climate change, which posed the question: as a waterfront town, if sea levels rose then boats would become an important way of life to get around the town. What sort of boat would they build, and who would use it?

Inspired by the collections at the V&A and Ipswich Museum, the students built a range of prototypes, from hospital ships to shops, family craft, floating cafes, leisure boats, personal boats, rescue ships, and fishing rafts.

Their work has been on display in rotation alongside loans from the V&A and work from all three schools will be on show at Ipswich Museum until August 31.

The next challenge is to make chairs and will launch in September 2022.

Cllr Carole Jones, Ipswich Borough Council portfolio holder for planning and museums, said: “DesignLabs Nation is an amazing opportunity for local schools and our local museums service - we are lucky to be one of only a few regional museums across the country to be taking part.

“I want to thank our museum team, and congratulate the students who took part – they were, without exception, a credit to their schools and to Ipswich, and I look forward to similar success from Ipswich’s school students with the next project, which focuses on furniture design.”

Schools looking to participate must book by September 1.