Young Enterprise Group Progress to UK Finals

A group of Lower Sixth Form pupils from St Peter's School, York, have reached the national finals of the Young Enterprise UK Company of the Year Competition. 

Following their success in the North Yorkshire County Final earlier this month, the Young Enterprise Group were crowned the North East and Yorkshire & Humber regional winners on Tuesday 25 May and will represent the region in the UK finals in June. They are one of 12 teams in the UK final, representing the best student businesses in the country. 

The Young Enterprise Group competed against five other teams for the North East title, and won the round following a brilliant display in the team interview, video presentation and company written report. They also had to produce a TV advert to promote their social enterprise, Caring Through Cooking.  

The pupils launched Caring Through Cooking last September and the business has gone from strength to strength. The social enterprise seeks to bring generations together, with a cookbook designed to enable families of people affected by Dementia-related diseases to participate in the simple act of cooking. The idea was inspired by the group’s Managing Director, Lucy White, who made a print-out cookbook for her gran when she was diagnosed with Dementia. 

There are 20 pupils in the business, ten of whom sit on the board of directors. The pupils were appointed to key roles including Managing Director, Head of Marketing and Head of Sales.  

Lucy White said: 

It feels amazing to have got through to the national final, especially with the range of incredible products we were up against from the rest of the North East. We received really helpful and constructive feedback from the judges and we can’t wait to see where else this will take us with new ideas already in progress! 

Mr Dominic Shread, who co-ordinates the Young Enterprise Group, said: 

It’s an incredible achievement for the pupils to go through to the national final. I have been astounded by the growth in confidence, hard-work and entrepreneurial spirit displayed by the students. This result now places the company in the top 12 student businesses in the UK! 

Mr Jeremy Walker, Head Master of St Peter's School, said:

This is a fantastic achievement and we are all proud of the team’s success. They produced an exceptional product and have shown great skills and flair throughout. Good luck for the next stage and thank you to Mr Shread for his work establishing Young Enterprise at St Peter’s. 

We wish the team all the best as they progress to the national finals of the UK Company of the Year Competition, which is organised by Young Enterprise. The final will be held digitally over two consecutive days on 15 and 16 June, and the pupils will be judged on the nature of their social enterprise, their business and teamwork skills, and the impact and legacy of their enterprise. The winning team will go on to represent the UK at the European Final in July.  

You can contact the Young Enterprise Group at [email protected], follow them on Instagram on @Caringthroughcooking or visit their website where you can purchase the Caring Through Cooking cookbook: www.ye-tradingstation.org.uk/product/bringing-generations-together-cookbook