Liverpool@CERN Particle School
The Liverpool@CERN Particle School is a five‑day residential programme that gives Sixth Form students an exceptional opportunity to experience particle physics at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. Each year, 24 students from around 12 schools join PhD students and postdoctoral researchers from the University of Liverpool’s LHCb and ATLAS groups for lectures, data‑analysis workshops, experiment visits and a detector‑design challenge.
Places are awarded through an annual essay competition coordinated by Sevenoaks School and assessed by researchers at CERN. In 2025, 120 essays were submitted and feedback was provided to all entries.
Founded in 2011, the programme has grown from two independent schools to a diverse cohort drawn equally from state and independent schools, with balanced participation from girls and boys across the SSLP, Kent, and Liverpool regions. The school continues to be coordinated by Sevenoaks School, maintaining strong partnerships and widening access to high‑level scientific enrichment.
Aims
The programme aims to enrich students’ learning beyond the curriculum by offering competitions, awards, talks, workshops, and visits that deepen subject engagement. It seeks to raise careers awareness through employer talks, workplace visits, and high‑quality resources that help students understand future pathways.
A further aim is to support disadvantaged and under-represented learners by providing targeted projects for girls, minority ethnic groups, and students facing socio‑economic barriers. The programme also works to improve access to physical resources, including specialist laboratories, equipment, and outdoor learning spaces.
Finally, it aims to smooth key educational transitions such as the move from primary to secondary school, from GCSE to sixth form, and from school to university, by offering structured activities that build confidence and readiness.
Background
The Liverpool@CERN Particle School was established in 2011 by Dr Alexandra (Ali) Galloni, Head of Science at Sevenoaks School and Professor Themis Bowcock. Dr Galloni completed her PhD at CERN in collaboration with the University of Liverpool, and the inaugural programme involved three students from Dulwich College and three students from King Edward’s School, Birmingham, Professor Bowcock’s former school. The programme subsequently expanded to include equal numbers of girls and boys and a balanced cohort drawn from both state and independent schools.
This growth was supported through partnerships with the Southwark Schools’ Learning Partnership (SSLP), the London Academy of Excellence Tottenham which was partnered with Alleyn’s School during Dr Galloni’s tenure there, and later with local schools in Kent following her move to SS. More recently, the programme has extended its reach to schools in Liverpool through collaborations with PhD students at the University of Liverpool.
The school began with six students in 2011, grew to 12 in 2012, and then ran with 18 students from 2013 to 2019. After moving online with 24 students from 2021 to 2023, it returned to in‑person learning with a 24‑student cohort in 2024 and in 2025. The programme will run again in 2026 and is expected to continue operating in the years ahead.
Resources
Critical resources for the programme are the University of Liverpool PhD students and Postdocs who are based at CERN or able to travel there for the trip. The coordinator, Ali Galloni, sends invitation letters via partnership schools, and students submit essays directly to Sevenoaks School, where they are anonymised and passed to the Liverpool CERN research team for marking and feedback. Selected applicants either self‑fund their trip (around £1000 for food, transport and accommodation) or receive support through funding applications coordinated with schools, students and parents, with contributions in recent years from the Heather McKissack charity and Southwark Schools' Learning Partnership.
The trip also serves as CPD for new staff, typically two from independent schools and one from a state school, sometimes including technicians. Travel is arranged through Club Europe, with students staying at the Geneva Youth Hostel and flying from Gatwick, and the coordinator holds two pre‑trip meetings for parents and students. During the week‑long visit, students spend full days at CERN, where meeting rooms are booked by Liverpool Postdocs and PhD students who deliver lectures, tours and programme facilitation.
Impact
The Particle School has delivered sustained, high‑impact outcomes over its 15‑year history, shaping students’ academic choices, strengthening researcher development and building a long‑standing culture of mentoring and collaboration.
The in‑person programme’s greatest strength is the exceptional rapport formed among students and PhD mentors, with friendships and professional connections continuing long after the trip. These relationships have directly influenced students’ academic trajectories: several have changed their university course choices because of the school, including students who went on to the Mathematical Institute at Oxford, Harvard, and major UK physics departments. One student secured a gap‑year internship on the g‑2 experiment, becoming a published author before starting university.
The online school broadened access to global particle physics expertise, enabling students to hear from researchers working on experiments worldwide, not only at CERN.
The programme also provides significant professional development for PhD students. Each year, first‑ to third‑year researchers collaborate, with second‑year students typically leading and mentoring their successors. This continuity has created a refined, stable structure and a strong tradition of peer mentoring.
The essay and feedback process is a further strength. With up to 120 essays submitted annually from around 14 schools, all essays are anonymised, categorised, and reviewed by PhD students who provide detailed feedback and scoring. This ensures fairness, supports gender balance, and offers students personalised academic guidance rarely available in school settings.
Overall, the Particle School consistently delivers deep educational impact, long‑term student outcomes, and meaningful researcher development, supported by a well‑established culture of collaboration and continuous improvement.
Pupil Involvement
Around 120 Year 12 students write essays each year. In 2026, approximately 80 boys and 40 girls applied. The gender balance and total numbers vary significantly from year to year, depending on which schools and teachers are engaged.
Frequency
The competition and its accompanying week‑long summer school operate on a continuous annual cycle, running every year so long as the University of Liverpool can provide the staff to deliver it and a UK school can host the coordinator. Since its launch in 2011, the programme has taken place each year, with the only interruption being the cancelled trip in 2020, followed by two online editions in 2021 and 2022 to maintain continuity. It remains an active and stable initiative, and planning is already in place with students selected for the 2026 cycle.