(PRWEB) July 16, 2008 -- "Science improves our quality of daily life, underpins prosperity and increases our readiness to face the challenges of the future," Ian Pearson Minister of State for Science and Innovation.

The East Midlands STEM Partnership is playing a crucial part in addressing the Minister's hopes for the future by acting as the voice of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education in the region. As part of this effort a website has been launched which allows students, teachers, partners and businesses to find the information they all need to inspire and to be inspired about these crucial subjects.

The website, part of the East Midlands Development Agency's (emda) £6.6m investment in this sector, can be found at www.emstempartnership.org.uk and contains dedicated sections for students, educators and businesses.

Students can find out about projects designed to inspire them to find out more about STEM subjects and activities; projects such as the STEM Student Journalist programme or the Ignite* Workshops. They can also get information about STEM careers and find out about all the latest STEM events coming up in the region.

Educators are introduced to a wealth of material specifically designed to help them inspire students to engage with STEM subjects, taking them seriously as lively and interesting future careers. They can also find out more about the STEM partners and the unique contributions they have to make to helping STEM education.

Partners are organisations or individuals involved in STEM activity who can use this website to find out about STEM activities across the Each Midlands. They can also tap into a whole host of valuable links and resources.

Businesses can find out just how they can engage with schools and colleges to play their part in ensuring that the students of today are the scientists of tomorrow which are needed for their businesses.

The work of the East Midlands STEM Partnership is already drawing plaudits with Maggie Philbin, former Tomorrow's World presenter, and the current BBC Science Correspondent, saying:

"I think STEM Student Reporters is a brilliant idea. I've always enjoyed science and technology but, for me, the real excitement began when I had to find ways of describing complicated or obscure processes to others. It's always hugely satisfying when people who say they "know nothing about science" write and say they have been fascinated by a particular story. I know that the students will bring a freshness and liveliness to their reporting, so I'm really looking forward to seeing their work and picking up some tips myself!"

Andrew Morgan, Skills and Communities Director at emda commented: "The recent national review of science and innovation by Lord Sainsbury said that the UK could be a global leader in science and innovation but only if 'we run very fast'. We are determined that the East Midlands will be in the forefront of producing the next generation of science and technology professionals and that starts with inspiring those who are now at school and in further education about the subjects. The new website provides an important access point for teachers and students to all the resources which are available to help kickstart this work. We want to ensure that as many teachers, students and businesses as possible know the site is there and make use of its valuable resources."

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