After getting to know each other over lunch, on Monday 16th October the students boarded a ferry from Hull to Rotterdam. Free passage was very kindly provided by P&O Ferries and the unique trip was set to be an exciting experience for all. The students were looking forward to meeting new friends, trying the Dutch food, exploring duty free and some were excited for their first ferry journey. The year 9 and 10 students were from a number of schools in the region including Unity City Academy, Dyke House Academy, Huntcliff Academy and St Hild’s Church of England School.

After arriving in Rotterdam on Tuesday morning, the group headed straight to Tata Steel to be introduced to the industry and the career opportunities within the industry. The students also had the opportunity to gain an insight into some of the work that is done at the steel company, including watching Steel Coils get processed. This session was led by Adrie and Arnold, two employees whose enthusiasm about their work was sure to inspire the students. After this the students had the amazing opportunity to visit Zaanse Schans, an open air museum, in which they had a tour of a windmill and got to see how clogs were made!

The following day, the Students visited the Pilots of Loodswezen from the Amsterdam branch. Each student had the opportunity to get experience driving the pilot boat and have a go on the ship simulator. Two students were even given the chance to park the pilot boat back into the Harbour!

On the Wednesday afternoon a fun interview skills session was conducted along with a competition to see who had progressed the most. Ben Mcmenamin from Unity City Academy won the title of the most progressed! The students then enjoyed their final meal in Rotterdam where Adrie from Tata Steel joined them to say farewell.

On the final day students visited Huntsman to explore chemical engineering careers and were provided insights into the industry through and a careers talk. The group also had a tour of the plant and got to play around with making foam in the lab. After the visit to Hunstman, it was time to depart from the Netherlands and board P&O back to Hull.

The evenings were spent well, with the last two nights being jam-packed with fun and competitive activities. A challenging music quiz was hosted on the final night in the enchanting 13th century castle and on the final night on the ship, students, chaperones and staff all battled it out in the arcades.

The trip can be considered a huge success, with excellent feedback from the students:

• All students said they had gained more knowledge about the maritime sector through the programme
• 75% of the students rated their experience a 10/10
• 100% of students rated their experience between 7-10

If you’d like to know more about this programme or the other experiences that we offer, you can find out more through our programmes page.