Member Article

Enterprising students back global petition

ENTERPRISING students from Redcar and Cleveland are backing a global campaign to demand access to school for every child around the world.

Teenagers from three colleges in the borough attended a Student Business Forum organised by the Enterprise Team – part of Redcar and Cleveland Council – as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week.

The event at Redcar and Cleveland College aimed to provide the business students with advice, information, and inspiration to plough ahead with their entrepreneurial ideas.

It also featured a giant graffiti wall, where students could add their names to a petition demanding out-of-school children around the world are given the right to education before the end of 2015 – a promise made at the United Nations in 2000.

Around 40,000 people have already signed the #UpForSchool petition.

Cameron Parker, co-founder and CEO of motivational company Hungry Under Dogs, was guest speaker at the event.

He visits schools, colleges, and sports teams to help motivate and inspire youngsters and is passionate about making a difference to people’s lives.

He said: “While I was at secondary school I never showed any interest or understood the importance of education.

“That changed when my American Football coach said he wanted me to study at college and play for the first British American Football Academy ‘The Pride’.

“I desperately wanted to get a scholarship to play in America and it was only then that I began to understand that to achieve my dreams I had to work hard on the field and twice as hard in the classroom.”

Cameron believes his poor GCSE results played a huge part in him not winning a scholarship to the United States, but hard work and sheer determination resulted in him scooping a string of accolades while at college including Players Player 2009/Coaches Player 2010, Hardest working athlete at the college 2010, Great Britain Lions Youth Starter and European Federation of American Football Allstar.

Councillor Mark Hannon, Redcar and Cleveland Council cabinet member for economic development, said: “These events are important for the young people of Redcar and Cleveland to see how they can fulfil their potential and contribute to the ever-growing success of the economy and the borough.”

The Student Business Forum was the latest in a series of events as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week including an Introduction to Enterprise workshop organised by the Enterprise Team.

The Enterprise Team are a group providing free tailored business support to more than 250 companies across the borough thanks to investment from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

The ERDF cash allows the Enterprise Team to focus on assisting new and existing small and medium size businesses based in the borough, as well as continuing to help residents who have a business idea.

The team is made up of skilled business coaches and is focused on helping companies across the borough to achieve their goals, including moving premises, increasing their turnover and improving profitability.

For more information about the Enterprise Team visit www.theenterpriseteam.co.uk or call 01642 438500

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Lottie King .