In classrooms across the Welsh Valleys, pupils are taking on a top-secret mission. Their brief? Build a secure messaging system no one can hack – and learn what it takes to stay safe online.
It’s part of a new challenge from the Royal Academy of Engineering and Ogi – turning STEM lessons into spy school, reimagining how we teach digital literacy in primary classrooms.
From tin-can phones to micro:bit coding, the challenge blends play with purpose. Pupils start with analogue tools, exploring how sound and light carry messages. Then it’s onto digital tech – coding encrypted messages, building secret-sharing devices, and learning how hackers intercept data.
And they’re not doing it alone. Real engineers from Ogi – including DevOps expert Kane Vaughn and AI specialist Becca Williams – are stepping into the classroom to show how the same tech is used in the real world. Pupils even get a hands-on look at AI in action, sparking questions about its power and its pitfalls.
“What makes this project different is how it breaks down big, complex ideas – like data interception and secure messaging – into something a seven-year-old can grasp,” said Sarah Vining, Brand Marketing Director at Ogi. “And more importantly, enjoy.”
The challenge links directly to the Welsh curriculum, covering science and tech, wellbeing, and language.
“Being a spy might be a game,” said Kane Vaughn, a DevOps Engineer at Ogi – and one of the programme mentors. “But more importantly, this is about building online confidence, for a group of young people who’ll grow up in a digital-first world.”
The programme will initially run in two schools in Caerphilly, Bryn Awel Primary School and Fochriw Primary School, in partnership with the Royal Academy of Engineering, before plans to roll it out more widely in 2026.
