Students will be going head-to-head in a Robot Wars style competition following a donation of equipment from National Grid in celebration of Science and Engineering Week.

Pupils at Rickmansworth School, in Scots Hill, and Parmiter's School, in High Elms Lane, will be building robots from scratch.

National Grid has partnered up with the schools in the hope that challenging pupil’s science, technology, engineering and maths skills will encourage them to pursue a career in these areas.

National Grid has been dismantling gasholders in Rickmansworth and Watford in order to regenerate brownfield land.

Watford’s elected mayor, Dorothy Thornhill, said: "I am delighted that National Grid is engaging with local schools and helping to increase interest in science and engineering. Having recently visited the Watford gas holder site I have seen the possible career opportunities and the need for skilled engineers."

Nadia Dew, property project manager at National Grid, said: "The robotics programme is an opportunity for National Gird to enable young people to visualise what an engineer does and support them in their academic development. I am really excited to have both these schools on board and I cannot wait to see what they create."