3D printing could help hospitalised children rebuild skills lost to illness or injury

The University of Surrey is part of the coalition, led by the University of Nottingham, working to give staff in hospital schools the skills and confidence to run hands-on design and engineering projects with pupils who cannot attend mainstream school. 

The three-year project, backed by a Royal Society Science Community Grant, will initially involve 25 schools and a coalition of universities working alongside The National Association for Hospital Education (NAHE). It will support staff across hospital schools, medical pupil referral units and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) inpatient units. 

At the University of Surrey, the partner setting is Surrey Teaching Centre at Tadworth Court, a medical pupil referral unit that educates children and young people admitted to The Children’s Trust for rehabilitation following an acquired brain injury. 

Schools taking part are being provided with a 3D printer and a national training programme delivered through their local partner university.  

The Science Community Grant is designed to boost STEM confidence among teachers and embed more practical science learning across participating schools and colleges. Funded organisations will build collaborative communities where teachers share best practice and connect with academics and industry professionals to enrich science teaching. 

Each school runs the programme across a term, in sessions built around user-centred design. Pupils begin by examining their own environment and identifying something that could work better for them, which in a hospital setting might be a practical aid for a task they find difficult, or a personalised item to make the space feel more like home. They are then guided through capturing design requirements and defining a design challenge, before learning to contribute to solutions themselves, from sketching and ideation through to CAD skills and 3D printing. The term ends with a showcase event bringing the network together to celebrate the work. 

Participating staff and STEM professionals will also take part in regular webinars and an annual in-person workshop to share best practice and strengthen connections across the partnership. 

Beyond the educational benefits, participating schools have identified potential to support pupils’ medical recovery. Teachers have highlighted opportunities to aid cognitive rehabilitation after acquired brain injury, rebuilding skills such as attention, memory, sequencing and problem-solving. In response, the project is partnering with the NIHR HealthTech Research Centre for Rehabilitation, led by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust , to explore how 3D printing could contribute to children’s rehabilitation and recovery after serious illness or injury.