TECH-WIZZ pupils have beaten down hundreds of professional adults to win a highly prestigious Essex Digital Media Award for a phone app they created.

Plume Academy students Eric Decanini and Reiss Tozer have designed a smart phone app from scratch, which works as an online daily planner and timetable system which stores all homework and other school assignments into a checklist.

The app, which has yet to be named, brings up suggestions for other tasks and activities which match with those carried out for students’ homework, which allows pupils to broaden and develop their studies.

On Thursday last week, Eric and Reiss along with principal Carl Wakefield and IT teacher Rob Howlett attended the Essex Digital Media Awards Ceremony in Boreham House Conference Centre in Chelmsford, where they were awarded Gold for the mobile app category.

The 16-year-olds were up alongside more than 300 professional adults across all categories with multiple years’ experience, being selected as one of only five nominations in Essex.

Carl Wakefield said: “The lads were up against established businesses and highly qualified, vastly experienced professionals yet despite the enormity of the challenge before them they won.

“The instantaneous and jubilant reaction from both Eric and Reiss when this was announced in a room of more than 350 adults was absolutely priceless and not only did they have to go up and receive their award, they were invited to speak about it as well.

“Eric is the calmest, most polite and most considered of young men and when given such an opportunity on such a grand stage, he did not fail.

“For one of the few times during the night, the room actually fell silent as he spoke with the utmost confidence and clarity about the app.

“What made it even better though was when Reiss was given his opportunity to speak, he was so humble and passed on the praise back to Eric – a true gentleman in every sense of the word.”

The Essex Digital Media Awards have been running for three years, with the notion of encouraging and growing business’ skillset and assets of digital technology in the increasingly digital world of business.

Other awards on the night included multiple awards for blogging and website design, as well as people’s choice and an inspiring future award.