Tech Triumph: Building a Mobile App for Medway Foodbank

Our Year 8 pupils embarked on an inspiring community project during their computing lessons this year, aimed at addressing the cost of living crisis through technology. Given the task of researching how tech could alleviate some of the pressures faced by those affected, they discovered a critical issue: local food banks, like Medway Foodbank, were struggling with high demand and low donations.

To tackle this, the pupils decided to create a mobile app that would inform users about the specific needs of the foodbank and the best places to donate. After reaching out to Medway Foodbank, we were delighted to have Sharon Wicker visit our school to explain the project brief in detail.

With Sharon’s insights, the pupils set to work planning, designing, and developing the app using JavaScript, keeping the foodbank’s requirements in mind. The resulting apps showcased a range of innovative designs and user-friendly features. Despite the high standard of work across the board, only one app could be crowned the winner.

The top ten apps, evaluated for their design, functionality, and potential impact, were submitted to our generous project sponsors, Albion. Phil Long and his colleagues from Albion further shortlisted these to five outstanding apps. Sharon Wicker then took on the challenging task of selecting the third, second, and first place winners from this final group.

The winners were announced in our school’s final assembly of the year. Congratulations to our runners-up George H, Enrique A, Rosanna L, Emily R, Charlie L, Daniel O, and Amy L for making the shortlist. Special accolades go to Charlotte J, who took third place with her impressive use of images and graphics, earning her a certificate and a £5 App Store voucher.

In joint second place were Lexie H and Archie C, each receiving a certificate and a £10 App Store voucher. Lexie was praised for her innovative feature of uploading images of donated products to a database, while Archie impressed with his simple design and use of icons and map pins for foodbank locations.

The top honour went to Dylan E, whose app stood out for its exceptional functionality, including features such as donation history tracking and a rewards system for users. Dylan was awarded a certificate and the grand prize of a mobile phone.

Certificates and prizes were presented by Sharon Wicker from Medway Foodbank and Phil Long from Albion, who both praised the pupils’ hard work and creativity. A huge thank you to them for their support in this project.

This initiative not only honed our pupils’ design and programming skills but also emphasised the power of technology in addressing real-world problems, boosting confidence, building resilience, and creating programs that could change lives. Congratulations to all involved for their dedication and ingenuity!