Enterprising students at Oathall Community College have raised hundreds of pounds for charities by participating in Young Enterprises ‘Tenner Challenge’. Over four weeks students use £10 pledges to get their student business ideas off the ground and make as much profit as they can.

This year, 18 teams made up from over 40 students in year 8 and year 9 took part. Teams provided a range of services and products such as chocolate pizzas, car washing, gardening services, arts and crafts and dog-walking. Students could sell their products & services to friends and family as well as at lunchtime fairs in school. Students commented that the challenge had taught them a lot about being independent and that it gave them a good experience of the financial & marketing side of running a business.

At the end of the four weeks, the teams returned their initial £10 and paid £1 as a legacy donation to Young Enterprise to support next year’s event. Students donated over £800 of profits to their chosen charities.

Mrs Laura Griffiths said,
It has been remarkable to see how well the students have taken on this challenge. Their dedication and commitment have been fantastic. They have shown how well they can work together in a team and have overcome obstacles they have faced. It has been a great experience for them to see what it is like to run a business of their own taking into consideration costs, advertising and profits. I am very proud of what they have achieved and that a huge amount of their profits is going to such fantastic charities