SCHOOLCHILDREN from Bridgwater became eco-engineers when they took part in a wind turbine-making competition.

About 50 Chilton Trinity Technology College Year 9 pupils competed in an engineering challenge which involved designing, making and then testing a wind turbine from limited materials.

A school spokesman said: "The students all showed great ingenuity in both their structure and generation technique."

Each team was judged on various criteria covering economics, aesthetics and efficiency.

The winning design generated more than 1.5v of power and had an innovative gearing system to maximise the turbine's efficiency.

The six best students gained a place on a specialist engineering conference at Cirencester Agricultural College.

Chilton Trinity continues its engineering theme with a free interactive lecture, A Rough Guide to Engineering, delivered by Science Made Simple on Tuesday.

Anyone can attend the event from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.