SHUTTLEWORTH College is over the moon after receiving a science grant to send a mobile phone into space to collect film footage.

The school, at Padiham, is believed to the first in the UK to attempt the project.

Science teacher Caroline Price came up with the idea last year as she wanted to get her pupils involved with a physics project outside the confines of a classroom. Her inspiration was the Brooklyn Space Programme — a dad in America sent an iPhone 100,000ft up and it filmed what was around it.

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Miss Price, who has been teaching at the college for five years, applied to the Institute of Physics, IET, and STFC School Grants Scheme for £500 to fund her plans to cover the costs of weather balloons, three mobile phones, temperature-resistant boxes and insulation materials as well as a GPS tracker.

She said: “I called it the Urban Space Project and sent my plans off hoping they would agree as it would be such a big coup for the school.

“I cannot believe we have received the grant and can now begin putting it all together.

“The idea is for children to work in teams over the next month or so to plan and design a method of collecting video footage from the stratosphere.

“We will then use a weather balloon to send up an insulated mobile phone or video camera which can then be collected using a GPS tracker, and the footage will be uploaded.

“It is going to be amazing for the pupils and for the school.

“It will hopefully capture the enthusiasm of the pupils. It will make a science and engineering project accessible to them and will boost their love of science.

“We need to inform the aviation authority that we are sending up the balloon, although we do not need permission, and have to carefully schedule it so there is minimal weather interference. There will be a frantic dash to try to locate it — and if it lands in the water, it will be irretrievable. We will do a trial so that the main launch minimises any issues.”

It is hoped the launch will take place before the summer holidays.

Padiham town councillor Chris Smith said: “It is great that the pupils will be taking part in something different and that the teacher has shown the initiative to apply for the grant.”