A tour of the new facilities by CSES members
On Tuesday 21 July 2026, twenty-one CSES members enjoyed a visit to the Ray Dolby Centre, the new Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge!
First, under the expert guidance of the incredibly knowledgeable Dr Harry Cliff, the group were shown around the museum, where just a few display cases house some very significant artefacts dating back to the founding of the laboratory in 1874. Equipment used by James Clerk Maxwell, J J Thomson and Ernest Rutherford, to name just a few – which helped make some of the greatest scientific advances in our history – were brilliantly described by Harry.
As if that were not enough, the party then began a tour of the lab itself. With a new guide, Dr David Ward, they were taken into the extensive teaching and workshop areas of the £350 million building. The world-leading laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art clean rooms, every machine they could ever need, and the means – and the people – to manufacture any equipment that money cannot buy. David spoke extensively about the facilities, the laboratory's training programmes – including work experience for Year 10 or 12 students – and their collaboration with industry. The skilled technicians are able to produce equipment for businesses outside of the University.
Peter Foreman, Former Honorary Treasurer, June 1937 to March 2026
Here we commemorate Peter Foreman, who peacefully passed away on 31st March 2026. Just two hours before he drew his last breath, he and son Chris were sharing recollections. He is remembered as a larger-than-life character, always forthright, almost always happy, and with an infectious laugh.
Until a few years’ ago, Peter was a long-standing and very active member of the Society. He was Honorary Treasurer for more than 20 years (all predating our online banking), handing over that baton in 2013, and was active on Council before and after.
Report from the Family Weekend
The Chelmsford Science Festival Family Weekend was once again a great success seeing several thousand members of the public coming to the CSES activity area. Many favourite demonstrations from previous years were present including Magnetics, 3D Printing, Centre of Gravity and Force and Moment. The ever-popular Egg Drop also saw a return with over 220 participants over the two days, including some coming back to try and beat last year’s attempts! We had some very innovative designs and some very good results! For those interested, the winning score was 1.1g (the lowest shock registered by our "digital egg") achieved by Violet, on the Sunday.
Creativity, Teamwork & Purpose at ARU’s Hack-a-Ton 25
In November 2025, Anglia Ruskin University’s Chelmsford campus was filled with curiosity and energy as the ARU STEM Society hosted Hack‑a‑ton 25. This two-day event brought together students from various backgrounds—including engineering, business, health, and law—to tackle real-world challenges through creativity, collaboration, and conversation.
🚀 What Happened
- Two full days of innovation
Participants were split into teams and given a challenge when the event began. Over the weekend, they used workshops, breakout rooms, and computer labs to develop ideas and in some cases working prototypes. - “Debate Your Hack”
A highlight was the interactive session where teams defended their ideas in front of an expert panel, sharpening both their problem-solving and public-speaking skills. - Support from start to finish
Expert mentors from ARU and companies like BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce (Alten), and the Chelmsford Science & Engineering Society guided students throughout.
We can now reveal the completed season of our social events and FREE evening lectures.
We hope that you enjoyed the first two excellent talks on Spacecraft Propulsion and Folding Electric Bikes, our inaugural visit to Taste of Italy and the 2025 Chelmsford Science Festival. We are sure that the remaining programme will be just as informative and exciting.
CSES has been working with ARU, Culture Chelmsford and the Spark! Youth Forum to bid for a significant national funding package that will enable three projects, including an expansion of the Chelmsford Science Festival. The full press release follows.
As part of a pilot project, we are seeking schools and industry partners who would be interested in holding an event focused on careers in the gaming industry (in the broadest sense). Please contact Adam Wood if you'd like to find out more.
Press Release: Young People Lead a Cultural Revolution in Chelmsford with Landmark £250,000 Investment
Chelmsford, Essex – Tuesday 27 May – Young people in Chelmsford are taking the lead in shaping the city's cultural future, thanks to a major £250,000 investment from Arts Council England, through the National Lottery Place Partnership Fund. This two-year, youth-led initiative marks the largest strategic cultural grant ever awarded in the district. It represents a bold new model for youth-powered civic leadership in the UK.
The Young Cultural Changemakers Programme will put 13–25-year-olds from local youth changemakers, Spark!, in the driving seat of decision-making. They’ll deliver cultural events, influence public policy, and help build a stronger, more inclusive creative economy that will benefit the Chelmsford district. The project is produced by Culture Chelmsford, and delivered in partnership with Chelmsford City Council, Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford For You, and Chelmsford College.
Formed in 2022 through the Local Cultural Education Partnership (LCEP), Spark! was established to amplify young voices, remove barriers to accessing creative opportunities and develop the next generation of civic changemakers. Now, thanks to the joint investment of Arts Council England and citywide partners, this expanded programme places young people in leadership roles, shaping Chelmsford’s cultural landscape and building pathways into the UK’s £124 billion creative industries.
Read more: CSES helps to secure major investment for Chelmsford Science Festival
You may have noticed that the look and feel of the website has changed slightly. This is because we are in the process of upgrading the software on which the website is based – this is a major upgrade involving several software components and a complete replacement of the visual template. We are therefore taking the opportunity to have a refresh, and to bring everything up-to-date in terms of accessibility, mobile device compatibility and so on.
Please bear with us while this work is completed. The main functions of the website should all be working, but there are still several behind-the-scenes upgrades to be made and various tweaks required to get everything fully back online. These will take place over the coming weeks.
If you have any problems using the website or find something not working, please do get in touch.
We are delighted to announce our new season of events, including the Chelmsford Science Festival, social meet-ups and FREE evening lectures at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford!
We have searched near and far for speakers and once again we have a varied and fascinating mix of topics so there is bound to be something of interest for everyone. We would say, though, don't just come to the talks that appeal to you, often the most interesting topics are those you may think are "not my thing".
So, what's in store?
25 April 2024 was the 150th anniversary of the birth of Guglielmo Marconi, inventor of radio and to whom the city of Chelmsford owes much of its industrial heritage.
Marconi set up the first factory for his Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company in Hall Street, Chelmsford in 1898. The work that took place there (and other sites subsequently) changed the world, completely revolutionising how we communicate with each other, entertain the population and sense the world around us. Find out more by reading this BBC article by CSES member Tim Wander.
The history of CSES, which had its centenary in 2020, is closely linked to the history of the Marconi Company. In its earliest days, the society was a meeting of engineers from the major companies based in Chelmsford, including Marconi's. You can read more about our history here.
We mark this occasion in collaboration with the Museo Marconi, Bologna, Italy, who are holding a special celebration event, further details of which can be found here.
A packed programme for everyone to look forward to
We are delighted to announce that our 2023-2024 season is taking shape, with (nearly) all the talks for the year now confirmed, the socials for the remainder of 2023 in the diary (more to follow!) and other highlights such as the Chelmsford Science Festival on the horizon.
We are also pleased to be jointly hosting a STEM Conference with Drapers' Academy at Chelmsford Cathedral (15 Nov), and to be able to offer a unique opportunity for students to hear a talk by the former Head of Technology at British Cycling (6 Dec)! Looking forward to 2024, we will be running TEXPO and Do & Discover as usual, and at various careers fairs and other events.
Keep an eye on the events page of our website for the latest programme. Members can receive email updates with all the latest news and invitations, so if you haven't yet joined the society but are thinking about it, we would encourage you to do so now! It's an easy, online process – free for students/teachers and only £12 a year for everyone else.
Read on for the events in the calendar so far.
- Do and Discover 2023
- Obituary: Vic Leverett (1944-2023)
- First Briton in space leads extravaganza of science
- Welcome to the 2022-2023 CSES programme
- Exhibition celebrates Chelmsford innovation
- Website technical issues
- CSES at the Chelmsford Festival
- CSES Summer 2022 Programme
- Celebrating 100 years of radio broadcast
- Chelmsford Innovation: Marconi and Beyond