We are delighted to announce that our Year 8 Future Business Magnates Team have claimed victory in the 2024 enterprise competition! The winners were announced at a glittering culmination event at Hardwick Hall Hotel.

Now in its 19th year, the County Durham Future Business Magnates Competiton, which is run by Business Durham, gives young people in Key Stage 3 the opportunity to develop a range of enterprise skills with guidance from a local business partner. The competition aims to build enthusiasm in young people and introduce them to the basics of starting and running a business.

School teams are supported by a business partner from a local firm who work with the team throughout the competition, lending their experience and expertise and guiding them in their first business venture. Working with Enterprise and Business Teacher, Miss Thornton, our Year 8 team, with Holly F, Verona S, James C, Harley M, Lydia H, Zackery R and Filip F, worked with Nigel Freeman and Stephen Henry from Newton Aycliffe based business, BTS Fabrications.

Each year, the competition has a different theme and in 2024, the challenge was to develop a product within the theme of ‘What a wonderful world - can you make it better?’. To fulfil this, our team created an innovative product called ‘Smart Weigh’, which is an eco-friendly, self weighing bin designed to help reduce food waste in homes and combat the cost of living crisis. The bin has sensors that link to an app which allows you to monitor food waste. It has two compartments, one of which allows for bio-degradable rubbish to be turned into compost. Users can even earn points based on how much waste is recycled or composted.

Teams from 11 secondary schools across the county entered the competition this year, taking part in a series of six business-related challenges which included everything from team building, product design, marketing, finance and ultimately, pitching their business to a panel of industry experts at the close of the competition. Prior to this final challenge, King James lay in second place, just one point behind the winning team. However, thanks to an outstanding pitch for the final challenge, our team topped the leader board and brought home the title. Congratulations!