Three children aged between five and ten have been chosen as this year's Mini McClouds winners allowing them exclusive access to the live show to meet Grand Designs very own Kevin McCloud.
Earlier this month Grand Designs Live, proudly sponsored by Anglian Home Improvements, were on the hunt for the primary school version of design guru and Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud. The exhibition has returned to Birmingham from 19-23 October 2016, and Grand Designs Live invited 38 local schools to design and submit their very own grand design prior to the event.
The show received some fantastic entries, with designs ranging from enchanted castles to mountain hideaways. A panel of judges selected the top 'blueprints' from the submissions, and have invited the one lucky winner from each of the three age groups to the live show. Once at the show, the budding designers met and opened the event with face of Grand Designs, Kevin McCloud.
From the 38 schools who submitted and created their very own Grand Design, the three winners from each age group have now been selected as pupils from The Oaks Primary School. Year 6 pupil, Joseph Hands took the prize in his age category with his detailed Jurassic Park themed design with the year 4 prize then taken by deserving winner Rawhah Usama's beautifully crafted Princess House. Nyla Abraham took the year 1 spot for her super contemporary Rocket House design and the three proud winners attended the exhibition for an exclusive meet and greet on launch day (19th October).
Oaks Primary School teacher Emma Watson said "Our new theme in class this term is building, construction and architecture, aptly named Grand Designs. The Mini McClouds competition was a great opportunity for the whole class to get involved in, the children had a range of ideas from magical houses to roller-coasters! The children are currently working on designing an outdoor home for our Guinea Pigs in our pet corner garden, including all the preparations that go into a grand build. The class is very excited to visit the Grand Designs Live show in Birmingham to get some ideas!"
Oaks Primary School's mini designers said, "I was very excited to design my own grand house for the competition. My favourite bit of my design is the rug that my cat would be able to turn on through pressure sensors. I can't wait to go to the Grand Designs Live show and meet Kevin McCloud so I can show him my ideas."
Kevin McCloud, Grand Designs presenter, said; "I have always had a passion for the design and architecture since a very young age, so it is absolutely great to see the potential designers of the future!"
Lee Newton, CEO of organisers Media 10, said; "We were extremely excited to launch the second Mini McCloud competition to celebrate Grand Designs Live 11th birthday. Our grand show always delivers the most up-to-date, creative trends in home design, so it is great to see what the future holds with our young, budding designers."
The show will be returning to the NEC in Birmingham, with over 400 exhibitors across six different sectors including: Grand Build, Grand Kitchens, Grand Bathrooms, Grand Technology, Grand Gardens and Grand Interiors.
Grand Designs Live takes place from 19-23 October 2016 at Birmingham’s NEC. Order your tickets online: www.granddesignslive.com or call the booking hotline on 0844 854 1348.
Venue: NEC, Birmingham, B40 1NT