HIGH flying young inventors from a North Yorkshire school have carried off a major design award.

The three youngsters from Dishforth Primary school, near Thirsk, came first second and third in the regional finals of Design a Drone, a competition run by Amazon and the UK Civil Aviation Authority.

The competition was open to primary schools across the country for pupils aged from seven to ten. The three winners from Dishforth were Owen who came first with his Alpha Heat 55 drone for monitoring forests to warn authorities in the event of fires. Second was Molly for her Drone Brigade design to act as a first response vehicle and third was Imogen W for her Homeless Help drone.

The young engineers were awarded gift baskets of science, technology, engineering and maths prizes, as well as £1,000 for the school.

Jonathan Nicholson,of the CAA, said: “All the entries were absolutely amazing. By the time these students are adults, drones could well be playing key roles in everyday life. But for that to happen we need everyone who flies a drone now to do so safely.”