Who is HYEN?
Our journey started in our dorm rooms as engineering students. With nothing more than our technical knowledge and frustration about the current education industry, we began to design, develop and deliver products and resources across the country. Today, since winning Innovate UK and RS Student funding, we are steadfast more than ever to tackle some of the world’s biggest education and technological challenges through designing, creating and delivering products and resources across the globe for everyone to enjoy.
Our mission is to give learners the best tools to learn and prototype. We aim to become a global education hub filled with accessible, engaging and high-quality tools and learning experiences that inspire students to discover, learn and play. We see education as not a lesson, but an experience that every person in the world should enjoy anytime and anywhere - no matter their background.
Why did we create the Magnetronics Kit?
Traditional electronics kits often rely on crocodile clips, which can be really difficult for young learners - especially those with low motor skills - to use. Recognising this barrier, we developed an innovative, intuitive system that removed the need for crocodile clips fully, when connecting the circuit. This allows all students to take part in electronics whilst building circuits quickly and easily without frustration.
Over the past few months, we've been testing and refining our kit by running hands-on workshops across schools and local community centres. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. At one point, in just three days over 220 students had the chance to experiment with our kit, many of whom had never built a working circuit before.
"I have never built a working circuit before due to the current equipment being hard to use. THIS IS AMAZING!"
- Year 5 student, North England
We have also seen teachers impressed with the kit. They highlighted how our kit saves them time and effort when teaching electronics, making STEM education more practical, inclusive and fun!
"The HYEN kit waseasy to use andenhanced the learning of the children in my class!"
~ Year 4 Teacher, North East England
How the RS Student Fund helped us
The £1,000 funding allowed us to expand our impact by:
- Scaling up production - We designed and created our own 3D-printed jigs and fixtures to produce kits in small batches, making our manufacturing processes more efficient.
- Enhancing safety and design - We improved the safety features of the kit to ensure that it aligns with CE and EU safety regulations.
- Expanding outreach - With the funds we built more kits, and ran additional workshops across North England, focusing on high-deprivation areas.
- Building awareness - We invested more into our marketing and branding, to grow our community and highlight the importance of breaking down barriers in STEM education.
Speaking of which, have you followed our socials? https://linktr.ee/hyenltd
The impact so far
Since launching these workshops, we've engaged with hundreds of students in STEM learning. With the RS Funding, we doubled our initial reach. Teachers have reported increased engagement and enthusiasm from their students, particularly those who previously struggled with traditional electronics kits.
Our next step includes gathering final feedback from students and educators before making our kits available for schools, youth groups and home learning.
Looking ahead
The demand for hands-on STEM learning is greater than ever, especially with the UK's ongoing STEM skills shortage. At HYEN, we are working on the ground, finding the root of these issues and tackling them head-on. We are committed to creating innovative learning tools that remove barriers and inspire the next generation of engineers, scientists and makers.
We're incredibly grateful for the support of RS Grass Roots and the RS Student Fund, which has enabled us to take this critical step in our journey. If you're passionate about EdTech, STEM Education and innovation, we'd love for you to follow our progress!
Stay updated with HYEN on our website - hyen.co.uk - and join the HYEN Club (it's free and keeps you updated)! We also have social media -> https://linktr.ee/hyenltd.
We are also in the process of looking for investors. If you are interested to work with us, and be part of our jounrney, then please reach out to hello@hyen.co.uk.
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