A TEAM of students have been flying the flag for Britain in a robot competition in America. The students, from Barclay School in Stevenage, spent six days in California for the FIRST Vex Battle at the Border Championship in San Diego. They competed agains

A TEAM of students have been flying the flag for Britain in a robot competition in America.

The students, from Barclay School in Stevenage, spent six days in California for the FIRST Vex Battle at the Border Championship in San Diego.

They competed against 32 other teams, many of whom have been building robots for several years.

It is the Barclay team's first foray into the highly competitive world of robot events and follows a demonstration event they attended in Los Angeles in March 2006.

As part of this year's visit they linked up with Madison High School in San Diego, which hosted the event, and spent lesson time at Chaminade College in West Hills, north of Los Angeles.

They also visited the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

Alan Fuller, a governor at Barclay, said: "This is a big step for the Barclay team and we were delighted to accept the invitation to participate in San Diego.

"The students came up with three conceptual solutions to the challenges set by the championship game.

"They have developed one of these concepts, with the help of David Mair, a mentoring engineer from MBDA in Stevenage, into a robust machine, which meets all the game's requirements.

"Development has not been without its problems but we are now, as they say in the US, 'good to go'."

The team is due back home today (Thursday).