AN experiment to find out whether science and faith are mutually exclusive gave young Einsteins food for thought.

Science roadshow God and The Big Bang rolled into Rivington and Blackrod High School in Horwich to find out whether the two concepts were compatible.

The day was led by leading scientists and also involved pupils from St Joseph’s RC School in Horwich and Westhoughton High School.

The scientists, who are Christians, included Dr Rebecca Lowton, from Horwich, who studied chemistry at Oxford. The young people took part in a series of science workshops, including solving a crime using forensic evidence and chromatography.

The sessions were designed to encourage young people to think about how evidence is used to reach a conclusion.

The aim was to help young people to think about science and faith, looking at evidence gathering, reasoning and using the skills of deduction.

The pupils took part in a debate about the compatibility of faith and science, including God, the Big Bang, and evolution.

Nikki Robertson, Rivington and Blackrod’s director of science and creative design, said: “The day was a great success. Students fully enjoyed all of the activities and the nature of the questions that they asked during the question and answer session prompted a high level of discussion around faith and science.

“The day prompted students to actively seek out the theories which tested the compatibility, and helped them to engage their thinking at a very high level.”