Malvern St James pupil, Evie Sambrook, Year 5, has won a high-profile national competition to create a design for a future Mars Rover vehicle.
Evie beat off fierce competition to win, with her creation E2Mars, featuring an unusual three-wheel design.
Although her creation is designed to visit another planet, she is following in her family's footsteps by designing vehicles. Her father, Nick Sambrook said: “It’s actually very fitting that her design featured a three-wheeled rover, as our family has a very strong connection to the Morgan Motor factory. My grandfather, Percy Sambrook, worked as an apprentice from the age of 15 and helped develop the Plus Eight in 1969 and the Plus Four five years later. His father was James Sambrook who started at the Malvern garage in its very early days in 1911, and helped develop the original Morgan three-wheeler.
I think Percy would be very proud of his great-granddaughter, as are we. Evie has been passionate about Mars since the age of five, having seen a television programme which sparked her interest.”
The competition was run by space technologies company Astrium, creator of the real Mars Rover 'Bridget', which is currently undergoing testing.
Evie said; “When I grow up I want to be the first person to walk on Mars. I want to go to space more than anything. It was a big shock to find out that I had won but I was very pleased because I had spent a long time on my entry.”
As part of her prize, Evie will visit Bridget in its 'Mars Yard' at Stevenage and meet astronaut Richard Garriott. Bridget will also make a special visit to Malvern St James, in the next few months.
Picture: Evie receives her prize at the RAC Club in Pall Mall (2) Evie with representatives from the UK Space Agency and the Atrium Rover Programme.