TWO local schools exceeded all expectations when three of their bright young inventors were chosen to compete for the coveted title of Young Engineer for Britain 2000.

The North West final of the Young Engineers for Britain competition being staged at BNFL, Warrington will be represented by pupils from Prescot School in Merseyside and Oakdene Primary School, Rainhill.

Prescot's representative will be 16-year-old Frank Bryan whose project is a Robotic Arm. The remote controlled arm is used for transporting radioactive substances.

In the Junior Section were seven teams are taking part, Jawad-ul-Zaman and Nicholas Yue, both 10, from Oakdene Primary School have the task of building a Time Machine with K'Nex a radically new toy building system.

The competitors will have the chance to demonstrate their creativity and ingenuity in front of a panel of professional engineers.

The overall winner of the North West final will automatically earn a place at the National Final in London in September to compete against others throughout the UK.

There will be prizes of K'Nex kits for the winner and runners-up in each region.

The winner of the National Final will receive a personal prize of £2,500, while the school will receive IBM computer equipment to the value of £2,500.

The industry trainee or student who wins the 'Working in Industry' award will receive a £1,000 prize.