Pupils from Kilton Thorpe Specialist (KTS) Academy – a school for children and young adults with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities – became entrepreneurs for the weekend.
Taking part in the Georgian Christmas event at Kirkleatham Museum, the pupils were given the unique opportunity to have their own stall and sell the crafts and products they had made to learn all about enterprise.
This is part of the Young Person’s Enterprise Competition, funded by Anglo American and supported by Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council, to create awareness of career pathways such as self-employment, and try to remove limitations and raise aspirations for young people in Redcar and Cleveland.
Other competition winners who also had the opportunity to test trade at the weekend’s event included Laura Ward from the Trembly Emporium, William Wilson from Avalon Labs and Danielle Hutchinson from Theos Playhouse.
As part of the programme, the Council also delivered an enterprise session with all competition winners to help them develop their business idea and product and prepare them for the market.
The event, which welcomed more than 7,000 visitors, was packed with fun and activities, and featured live performances from young people in TunedIn2Music programme, Apollo Street Band and Fat Cat Brass, who helped create a festive atmosphere.
The young entrepreneurs also met Father Christmas and his reindeer.
Chris Corcoran, Assistant Headteacher at KTS Academy, said:
“For KTS this is a fantastic opportunity; our pupils work really hard. We’ve got some of the most creative, imaginative, and hardworking pupils I’ve worked with in my career. It’s really important for them and for other people to see that there isn’t a limitation on what they are capable of doing. We want our pupils to understand that there is no ceiling for them when they leave KTS, that they can go on and achieve a career and they can add value to society.
“One of the things we do to help ensure our children go onto the right placements when they leave KTS is provide vocational pathways. The placements we offer range from working out on a farm, in our on-site café and contributing to community projects such as upcycling and community care. Selling products at the stall at the event over the weekend was a great learning experience for them.”
Cllr Lynn Pallister, Cabinet Member for Growth and Enterprise at the Council, said:
“It’s fantastic that our young people have been granted this opportunity to discover whether an entrepreneurial career is for them and to also have a bit of fun, providing a great foundation to experience trading at a busy event. It’s never too early to learn about business and enterprise and empowering our young people to dare to dream of becoming self-employed one day. We were thrilled to be a part of this.”
Vicky Bolton, Social Programmes Specialist for Anglo American, said:
“This event is a great realisation of our priority of creating opportunities and connecting people to them. All the participants really embraced the opportunity to take part in the Christmas Festival and experience trading and working with customers. We’re so pleased with the success of the event and are looking forward to what’s next for the young entrepreneurs.”
The event will return next year.