A hotel in space? - Shirebrook students compete in a national competition to design one

Two teams from Shirebrook Academy are competing in the final of a national competition to design and build a hotel in space

And to make life more difficult the marketing presentation has to be given in French – the language of choice for the whole challenge.

Students will compete with five other teams next week to claim the top prize in the International Space Challenge – a visit to the National Space Academy in Leicester.

James Edwards, the acting head of modern foreign languages, said: “They are all so keen to do well and are taking it very seriously.

“We’ve been looking at more technical language use in French – so they aren’t thrown by a language barrier.

“And we’ve been looking at the advantages and disadvantages of different materials they’re considering using in the final.

“The final is a bit more technical than the heats so we want them to be prepared and feel ready for the challenge.”

Mr Edwards said: “Looking into the marketing of the hotel is taking their skills even further – it’s like The Apprentice.”