Around 200 young people in Shropshire aged between 15 and 19 have been setting up their own businesses as part of a project to help them develop their enterprise skills.
Students from Hadley Learning Community take to the stage to deliver their presentation
Groups of students have worked in teams to form businesses which have traded throughout the academic year and at trade stands at The Darwin Centre in Shrewsbury and Telford Shopping Centre.
It’s all part of the Young Enterprise Company Programme, and they will be setting up their stands for the last time at the Park Inn in Telford on May 4 for this year’s Young Enterprise Awards Celebration evening.
Many other business people in Shropshire support Young Enterprise – as volunteer advisers – helping with the trade fairs and judging the presentations held this year at Priorslee Campus.
One of the judges, Mark Gibson of Phoenix Centre Management said: “I found the whole process fantastic and inspiring – listening to young people talk about their experiences learning to run a business was fascinating – so we now sponsor the Young Enterprise Social Enterprise Award.”
Terry Seston, who has been a judge for over 20 years, said: “My background is human resources and I’m on the board of directors of several large charities.
“I’ve been involved in Young Enterprise a long time and have seen the progress Young Enterprise is making – each year teams make use of new technology. As I judge I always look for enthusiasm and I would say to everyone that the most important thing is to enjoy it.”
People like Dr Geoffrey Davies OBE of Alamo Group, Mandy Thorn of Marches Care and Keith Winter of Dyke Yaxley have been sponsoring the awards for many years.
Regular supporters, such as Telford & Wrekin Council, Shropshire Council, Aarons Solicitors, Belton Cheese, BCRS and Caterpillar Reman, will also be attending alongside new sponsors like Midcounties Co-operative, Network Support Solutions and J&PR Ltd.
The awards evening is always a very inspirational event and local companies who support the teams during the year will be there, along with businesses who sponsor the event, to congratulate the young people they support as they collect their awards.
Anyone interested in supporting young people in Shropshire who would like to contribute to the event in some way can consider several sponsorship opportunities ranging from £200 to sponsor an award to £350 for a table.
Other options include sponsoring part of the event – menus, wine, programmes – or providing a prize for the raffle.
For more information contact David Graham, Manager for Young Enterprise in Shropshire, by emailing david.graham@y-e.org.uk
