- 66 students took part in the inaugural Welsh regional finals of the 2025 UK Youth Rocketry Challenge (UKROC)
- Haverfordwest High VC School are through to the UKROC 2025 National Finals
- This year’s competition is set to be the largest and most geographically diverse in the competition’s almost 20-year history
Snowdonia (24 March 2025) – The inaugural Welsh regional finals of the 2025 UK Youth Rocketry Challenge (UKROC) saw 13 teams of students from 6 Welsh schools compete for a spot in the National Finals.
The competition sees teams of school children aged 11-18 design, build and launch a model rocket carrying a precious payload - an egg.
Haverfordwest High VC School have successfully advanced to the UKROC 2025 National Finals, where they will join other regional champions to compete for the national title.
Organised by ADS, the UK’s aerospace, defence, security, and space trade association, this year’s competition is set to be the largest and most geographically diverse in the competition’s nearly 20-year history.
Hosted at the Snowdonia Space Centre, the rockets were tasked with reaching an altitude of 790 feet and returning safely to the ground within a time window of 41-44 seconds.
Kevin Craven, CEO of ADS, said: “A huge congratulations to all the students who participated in today’s activities. UKROC plays a vital role in developing the next generation of leaders for our industry. By offering hands-on experience, this competition inspires a passion for STEM, showing that our sectors offer exciting and rewarding career paths. The competition at the National Finals will be fierce, and we wish all the schools the best of luck for the competition ahead.”
Inaugural Welsh Competition
The Welsh regionals took place for the first time in 19 years thanks to funding from the UK Space Agency secured by the Snowdonia Aerospace Centre. This essential funding supported travel and equipment costs, helping to widen access to the competition for schools right across the region.
Jeremy Howitt, Snowdonia Aerospace Centre said: “Today has showcased some incredibly talented and innovative young people from across Wales. As the proud hosts of today’s event, we congratulate all the schools for their remarkable effort – building a spacecraft is no small feat. Wales is a thriving hub of space innovation, and initiatives like these are helping to secure the future of our sector and provide the vital pipeline of talent we need. We encourage all participants to explore the rewarding and exciting opportunities available in our growing space sector.”
Qualifying teams will now refine their rockets before joining competitors for the National Final on 1 May in Buckminster.
The 2025 UKROC competition will see almost 200 teams of schoolchildren from throughout the UK compete in seven regional finals. The winners of the National final will head to Paris, where the UK will defend its two-year title as International Youth Rocketry Champions.
The 2025 competition is kindly sponsored by Airbus and Lockheed Martin.
The competition sees teams of school children aged 11-18 design, build and launch a model rocket carrying a precious payload - an egg.
Haverfordwest High VC School have successfully advanced to the UKROC 2025 National Finals, where they will join other regional champions to compete for the national title.
Organised by ADS, the UK’s aerospace, defence, security, and space trade association, this year’s competition is set to be the largest and most geographically diverse in the competition’s nearly 20-year history.
Hosted at the Snowdonia Space Centre, the rockets were tasked with reaching an altitude of 790 feet and returning safely to the ground within a time window of 41-44 seconds.
Kevin Craven, CEO of ADS, said: “A huge congratulations to all the students who participated in today’s activities. UKROC plays a vital role in developing the next generation of leaders for our industry. By offering hands-on experience, this competition inspires a passion for STEM, showing that our sectors offer exciting and rewarding career paths. The competition at the National Finals will be fierce, and we wish all the schools the best of luck for the competition ahead.”
Inaugural Welsh Competition
The Welsh regionals took place for the first time in 19 years thanks to funding from the UK Space Agency secured by the Snowdonia Aerospace Centre. This essential funding supported travel and equipment costs, helping to widen access to the competition for schools right across the region.
Jeremy Howitt, Snowdonia Aerospace Centre said: “Today has showcased some incredibly talented and innovative young people from across Wales. As the proud hosts of today’s event, we congratulate all the schools for their remarkable effort – building a spacecraft is no small feat. Wales is a thriving hub of space innovation, and initiatives like these are helping to secure the future of our sector and provide the vital pipeline of talent we need. We encourage all participants to explore the rewarding and exciting opportunities available in our growing space sector.”
Qualifying teams will now refine their rockets before joining competitors for the National Final on 1 May in Buckminster.
The 2025 UKROC competition will see almost 200 teams of schoolchildren from throughout the UK compete in seven regional finals. The winners of the National final will head to Paris, where the UK will defend its two-year title as International Youth Rocketry Champions.
The 2025 competition is kindly sponsored by Airbus and Lockheed Martin.
About the Youth Rocketry Challenge
The UK Youth Rocketry Challenge (UKROC) is a national competition for young people aged 11 – 18 from any secondary schools, colleges, educational facilities or youth groups to design, build and launch a model rocket with a fragile payload. The competition is designed to encourage creativity, innovative thinking and appeal to young people interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) and inspire them to consider fascinating careers in the aerospace, defence and space industries.
UKROC 2025 is the largest and most in-demand event in the competition's history.
The national champions will win an all-expenses paid trip to Paris to represent the UK in a fly off against international teams from the USA, Japan, and France at the 2025 edition of Paris Airshow.
If you’d like to find out more about the UKROC, please visit the website: https://www.ukroc.com/
About ADS
ADS is the trade association for the UK’s aerospace, defence, security and space sectors, representing more than 1400 members throughout the UK.
More than 40% of ADS members are active in the space sector.
The UK Youth Rocketry Challenge (UKROC) is a national competition for young people aged 11 – 18 from any secondary schools, colleges, educational facilities or youth groups to design, build and launch a model rocket with a fragile payload. The competition is designed to encourage creativity, innovative thinking and appeal to young people interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) and inspire them to consider fascinating careers in the aerospace, defence and space industries.
UKROC 2025 is the largest and most in-demand event in the competition's history.
The national champions will win an all-expenses paid trip to Paris to represent the UK in a fly off against international teams from the USA, Japan, and France at the 2025 edition of Paris Airshow.
If you’d like to find out more about the UKROC, please visit the website: https://www.ukroc.com/
About ADS
ADS is the trade association for the UK’s aerospace, defence, security and space sectors, representing more than 1400 members throughout the UK.
More than 40% of ADS members are active in the space sector.