Enterprising students set for Croke Park final

TEENAGE entrepreneurs from three local schools have won a place to represent Fingal at the Student Enterprise Programme (SEP) National Finals in Croke Park next month. 

Every September through LEO Fingal, entrepreneurial secondary school students begin their business journey as they are encouraged to research, set-up and run their own real-world businesses. 

The enterprise education initiative delivered by the 31 LEOs in local authorities, is the most successful student enterprise programme of its kind in the country. 

An estimated 26,000 students from 490 schools around the country begin their entrepreneurial journey every year with the help of their teachers, student enterprise co-ordinators and Local Enterprise Office. 

Fingal accounted for 2,700 of these students, making its competition by far the biggest in the country.

Students from 29 Fingal schools competed in the County Final at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown. 

All students started up their own real-life business in a structured programme where they learned real business management skills.

Students from Malahide Portmarnock Educate Together School will represent Fingal in the national final in the Junior Category with their business, ‘SpecRest’, which is a device for conveniently storing eyewear.

In the Intermediate Category, Loreto Balbriggan scooped the top award, with their project, ‘Page Keepers’, a system to help book readers. 

In the Senior Category Fingal will be represented on May 3 by ‘Bee Kind’, a project from St Fintan’s High School, Sutton. 

This is an innovative business set up to enable homeowners to attract bees which in turn helps the environment and eco-system by encouraging pollination. 

The winner in the senior category also scoops the grand prize of the coveted two-day educational trip to Barcelona, where the students and teachers will mingle with enterprising Spanish students who are engaged in other EU-funded enterprise development programmes.

As well as having the biggest competition in the country, Fingal also boasts the most generous prize fund, thanks to sponsors of the programme: One4All Multi-store Gift Cards, The Blanchardstown Shopping Centre and the Dublin and Dun Laoghaire Education and Training Board (DDLETB).

Speaking about the event, Mayor of Fingal Cllr Anthony Lavin highlighted the positive contribution of the SEP to the Fingal region. 

“One of the key roles of Fingal County Council is to ensure that our citizens are given every opportunity to be successful, especially the coming generation,” he said.

“Through the Student Enterprise Programme, our students are learning the skills that will help them become more entrepreneurial and contribute positively to their careers.”

Further information about the Student Enterprise Programme is available at www.studententerprise.ie and by searching #studententerprise on social media.