UK’s first dedicated school Virtual Reality Suite 

Our new Virtual Reality suite was officially launched by Victoria Prentis MP on Friday 10th February 2017.

Students and staff at Banbury Aspirations Campus will pioneer Virtual Reality (VR) projects in a permanent Virtual Reality suite.

The VR suite, using room-scale HTC Vive technology, is a creative collaboration between Banbury Aspirations Campus and local software company Playko. Together they aim to involve everyone in shaping the future using emerging VR technology.

Playko director Yin Chien Yeap, whose children attend Banbury Academy, says: “Playko is exploring commercial uses for Virtual Reality in aviation, architecture and entertainment. This permanent VR facility is already allowing the sixth-form computer science students to turn their ideas into reality, and I can’t wait to see what VR experiences all the staff and students will create”.

Sylvia Thomas, campus principal, says: “From humanities to science and arts, languages to sports, VR offers new ways to learn. We are very excited to see how pupils and staff will be able to use the new Virtual Reality suite to interact and create, enriching their school experience.”

Virtual Reality allows you to explore three-dimensional spaces – photo-real or computer-generated – using a head-mounted 3D display that tracks your movement as you walk, plus two hand-held controllers that make the technology uniquely interactive. The Virtual Reality suite will be equipped with three room-scale VR stations using HTC Vive.

Playko has a wide portfolio of software projects in the fields of medical applications, aviation, sports and display technology. Yin Chien Yeap founded the company in 2001 after working in the computer games industry. His MEng degree is from Imperial College, London.

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