Project: |
BiG - Make it your Business
Local Enterprise Growth Initiative for Sheffield’s Schools |
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Client: |
Sheffield Council Children & Young People’s Directorate |
Background: |
The Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (LEGI) was announced by the Chancellor in his 2005 Budget. It’s focused on the most deprived local areas across the country with a view to boosting local economies by developing enterprise skills and new enterprise activities. The aim is supported by three national-level outcomes:
- To increase total entrepreneurial activity among the population in deprived local areas
- To support the sustainable growth and reduce the failure rate of locally-owned business in deprived areas
- To attract appropriate investment and franchising into deprived areas, making use of local labour resources
Backed by LEGI funding, BiG is focused on 12 secondary schools in Sheffield’s most deprived areas, working with a large range of partners in the business and public sector. It aims to engage children from 9 to 19 – in developing an insight into the world of work and the enterprising skills they will need to shape their future. |
Our
contribution: |
We helped the schools to draw up their three year development plans for dynamic new ways of embedding enterprise education in the curriculum and fostering entrepreneurial skills. David Kay, one of our Directors, is now providing Enterprise Champion support to the project.
To help launch the programme and raise awareness of existing best practice, we ran a collaborative conference involving both the BiG and Rotherham Ready programmes, including contributions from Scotland’s Determined to Succeed team. |
Our
approach: |
We work collaboratively with the schools, the Authority, the Chamber and a team of Enterprise Champions. We bring our business experience combined with an understanding of schools and many years of work as creative and digital sector specialists for business/education partnership work. We are also able to link in current work on the introduction of the 14-19 Diplomas.
We helped to organise the BiG Challenge 2008, in which teams of young people aged 11-19 were given £25 with which to set up a profitable enterprise. the competition culminated in a glamorous awards ceremony at Sheffield City Hall. The winning team recieved £15000 for their school and a trip to Harvard Business School in Boston. All the winning teams' profits, amounting to £6779, went to the charities of their choice.
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Results: |
The school projects commenced in September 2007 so it is too early to comment on results. |
