St. Michael’s Catholic Academy in Billingham is celebrating an outstanding achievement from our talented Year 8 students - the incredible CyberStars of 8H!

Over a ten‑day national challenge, four of our pupils - Amber M, Maggie S, Ellie H and Sophia L - came together as Team Star Techs to take on the prestigious CyberFirst Girls Competition, organised by GCHQ and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

This exciting and fast‑growing UK competition aims to encourage girls into the rapidly evolving world of cyber security — and our students rose brilliantly to the challenge.

Taking on Coding, Cryptography and Cyber Security

Throughout the competition, the girls tackled a series of complex tasks in:

  • Coding
  • Cryptography
  • Networking
  • Cyber security
  • Logic and problem‑solving

Competing against schools from across the UK, Star Techs demonstrated remarkable teamwork, determination, and digital talent.

A Record‑Breaking Result for St. Michael’s!

We are incredibly proud to announce that the team scored an impressive:

9,015 points — finishing 2nd in the entire North East region!

This is the highest score St. Michael’s Catholic Academy has ever achieved in this competition. An enormous congratulations to the whole team!

Special Recognition for Amber

A huge shout‑out goes to Amber, who achieved a phenomenal:

7,365 points individually

This makes her the highest‑scoring St. Michael’s student in the history of the CyberFirst Girls Competition. An outstanding personal achievement!

A Record Number of Girls Taking Part

Even more exciting is the growing enthusiasm for cyber learning across our school. This year:

45 girls and 13 teams took part — our highest participation rate ever.

We could not be more proud of every single student who got involved, showed resilience, and explored the world of cyber security.

Inspiring the Next Generation of Cyber Professionals

At St. Michael’s Catholic Academy, we are committed to encouraging girls into STEM subjects and helping them develop skills for the digital future. Our students’ success in the CyberFirst Girls Competition is a shining example of what can be achieved with curiosity, teamwork, and confidence.

Well done to our CyberStars — you are inspiring the next generation of female tech leaders!