This August, the PRESTIGE-AF Escape Room was invited to take part in STEM Futures for the second year running.
Imperial's STEM Futures programme returned in the Summer break for GCSE and A-Level students. The programme aims to support students from Black backgrounds to explore STEM degrees and careers through lectures, subject-specific workshops and sessions around careers, personal development and study skills.
PRESTIGE-AF is a 7-year European-funded research project that aims to optimise stroke prevention in patients who have experienced bleeding in the brain. The Research Impact Management Office (RIMO) within Imperial supports the project on communication and project management activities.
RIMO Science Communication Officer Harry Jenkins and Project Communication Coordinator Alexandra Rayner led the 50+ students through the hands-on engagement activity.
The Escape Room was created by the team as an engaging and creative way of communicating research with wider audiences. To date, over 400 people have taken part in the activity.
The students were required to work as a team to tackle various puzzles, crack codes and uncover hidden messages to find out the information required to enrol a patient onto the PRESTIGE-AF clinical trial.
The students noted the importance of clear communication and teamwork (as well as learning a thing or two about stroke prevention) as standout takeaways from taking part in the Escape Room. 
If you're interested in learning more about the creation of the PRESTIGE-AF Escape Room, get in touch with the team!
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Alexandra Halbish Rayner
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