Led by social entrepreneur, Matt Kepple and Visionpath founder, Patrick Philpott, students were split into teams and tasked with coming up with a business idea which tackled everyday problems.

This competition was open to both Year 9 and 10 students. The Manchester Academy team (comprised entirely of Year 9 students) were working against the clock and against teams of Year 10 students from four other schools. This did not deter our students. They created their business ideas quickly. Working with mentors from DWF, the students were coached in developing core skills such as public speaking, communication, problem solving and teamwork.

After the students had practised their networking skills over a delicious lunch, the ‘Tigers’ arrived! Each school then had to present their business idea to the panel.

There were 10 teams and the competition was fierce. The ‘Tigers’ were in their ‘cage’ deliberating for what seemed like ages. Finally, they returned. They named the 5 best teams and Manchester Academy students held their breath as both teams were in the last 5. Then the head ‘Tiger’ announced that Manchester Academy had won!

Winning the SKILL! trophy and £20 Topshop/TopMan voucher, the students were absolutely thrilled. However the competition does not end there!

During the presentations each team were filmed. The presentations were then uploaded to a website and business customers of Aldermore Bank – who sponsored today’s event – were asked to decide which team has the best business idea. The competition runs for one week. The winning team will receive £1,000 to spend in school on Enterprise events. Fingers crossed!

By Ruth Warburton
Enterprise Administrator
Manchester Academy

 See also Manchester MP app-lauds business skills of local school