STEMFest, which was due to be held this month, had an allocated budget of £14,000 from the Department of Enterprise.
Significant logistical challenged with Bus Vannin resulted in the postponement of the year’s event.
The amount of the event came to light in the House of Keys after the Enterprise Minister was asked the cost by Jason Moorhouse.
The budget for the event was based on previous years, with provision for sponsorship to offset against and reduce the overall cost to the Department.
For 2024, approximately £4,500 was secured in principle from private sector partners to deliver the event, meaning the expected total cost to the Department stood at approximately £9,500.
Postponement of StemFest
Minister Tim Johnston said that the decision to postpone the event is “regrettable”, but he clarified that the event has been postponed at this stage and not cancelled.
He added: “Given that the event has been postponed and not cancelled there is not forecast to be any specific additional cost attributable to this decision at this stage, as both expected costs and sponsorship income will be carried forward to the rescheduled event.
“I am grateful to all event partners and suppliers for their cooperation and understanding in this regard.”
Alternatives
The Minister told the member for Arbory, Castletown and Malew that a “range of alternative options were considered ahead of the final decision to postpone”.
These included alternative transport arrangements through private sector providers, requesting parents to support in transporting their own children to the event and the potential to extend the event over an additional day to spread the transport requirements over a longer period.
He said: “However, ultimately all potential options had significant drawbacks which would have led to inconsistent attendance opportunity, additional pressure on attending businesses and extra costs.
“The fairest approach, therefore, was to postpone and plan for a rescheduled event in Q1 2025 to enable the same school year groups to attend within this academic year as originally planned.”
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