STEM Workshops in Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough was transformed from a small farmstead of just 25 inhabitants in 1801 into a global centre of iron and steel production within a single century, earning it the nickname "Ironopolis". The Teesside iron masters adapted the Bessemer process to convert the region's phosphoric ironstone into steel on a mass scale. The Transporter Bridge, which opened in 1911 and is the longest of its kind still standing anywhere in the world, stands as an iconic symbol of the area's engineering prowess, though it has been closed to crossings since 2019 pending structural repairs. The chemical industry also has deep roots on Teesside, with the Billingham plant, taken over by Brunner Mond in the 1920s, growing under ICI into a major fertiliser producer.

John Walker, the Stockton-on-Tees chemist who invented the friction match in 1827, exemplifies the region's tradition of practical scientific innovation. Henry Bolckow and John Vaughan, whose ironworks grew into the giant Bolckow Vaughan company, turned Teesside into a world leader in iron and steel production during the 19th century. Dorothy Buchanan, who worked at Dorman Long's design offices in Middlesbrough on the steelwork for the Tyne Bridge, became the first woman admitted as an Associate Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1927, the sole woman among nearly ten thousand male members. More recently, Teesside University has produced notable graduates in digital media, engineering and health sciences.

Teesside is at the centre of a major UK clean energy and industrial decarbonisation effort. The Teesworks site, the largest industrial development zone in the UK, is being transformed into a hub for clean energy, with projects including the Net Zero Teesside carbon capture facility. The Teesside Freeport, the UK's largest, is attracting major investment in advanced manufacturing and logistics. SABIC and Huntsman operate large-scale chemical and petrochemical facilities, while the Materials Processing Institute provides applied research services to process industries worldwide.

The process industries on Teesside offer apprenticeship and graduate routes in chemical engineering, plant operations, instrumentation and process control, with employers including SABIC and Huntsman running well-established training programmes. The clean energy sector is creating new roles in carbon capture, offshore wind servicing and industrial decarbonisation. Teesside University is a major STEM education provider with programmes in engineering, computing, science and digital media, and was named Times Higher Education's University of the Year in 2009 and again in 2025.