Rishworth School has spent the past three years working to close the gender gap in computing. With Meet and Code funding, computing teacher Tina Fountain designed a series of girls-only workshops that gave students a chance to explore coding, robotics, and digital making in a fun, supportive environment.
The activities — from building simple robots to experimenting with lights and sensors — helped girls see coding as creative, collaborative, and genuinely enjoyable. The low-pressure, exploratory format allowed students to try ideas, make mistakes, and learn by doing.
The shift in perception was immediate. Girls who had never considered coding suddenly saw themselves in the world of technology. One student shared:
I never really liked programming, but now I want to study it at GCSE. Is it too late to take GCSE?
Rishworth School has spent the past three years working to close the gendYounger girls echoed the excitement:
This is so cool.
I really love coding.
For the school, the impact is measurable and historic: after several years with zero female GCSE computing candidates, Rishworth now expects five to six girls to choose the subject next year.
Tina explains how powerful confidence can be:
Once they’re confident, they stand on their own two feet even in the mixed classes (...). They’ll be the first with their hands up. They can use the key terminology and they’re comfortable doing so. Once we can get girls confident, they will thrive.
