Sheffield's BiG Challenge launches in style

The third BiG Challenge competition was launched with a bang this week with Leader of the Council, Councillor Paul Scriven, and Cabinet member for Employment, Enterprise and Development, Councillor Colin Ross taking part in a unique event using up to the minute virtual classroom technology.

 

The ‘Eurovision’ styled technology saw classrooms of BiG Challenge teams from across the city beamed via HDTV quality video into Red Tape Central where the Leader of the Council launched the competition and spoke to the students. As well as students who attended Red Tape on the day, the East, North West, South, and Hallam City Learning Centres enabled students to interact with the proceedings taking place in the city centre and to listen to real time interviews with past teams and the key speech from Leader of the Council, Councillor Paul Scriven.

 

The BiG Challenge, part of the BiG: Make it Your Business programme, invites groups of students from all 30 schools and colleges across Sheffield to set up their own business and turn a start up loan of £25 into as much profit as possible over the next five months. The winning teams will be announced in a glitzy award ceremony in April next year.

 

The groups are each offered help from entrepreneurs from across the city and business mentors who offer advice and guidance. 286 teams entered the challenge last year, representing 22 schools and colleges from across the city. The average profit made by teams completing the challenge was over £200 with one team making £3,131.

 

9 Peas in a Pod, last year’s winners of the BiG Challenge, won a trip of a lifetime to Paris. The team were concerned about the increase of gun, knife crime and gang violence in the local area, and so designed, created and sold a range of t-shirts and bags to raise awareness about the issue to the local community. 

 

Their school was awarded £10,000 to spend on enterprise activities for current and future students and the profit of more than £200 was donated to Sheffield Children’s Hospital.

 

Launching the event at Red Tape Central and speaking over the internet to students at City Learning Centres across Sheffield, Councillor Paul Scriven said: 

 

“We are committed to encouraging entrepreneurial talent in Sheffield and this year we want the BiG Challenge to be bigger and better. Last year’s teams raised over £17k in profit and students were inspired and equipped with the confidence to look at running their own business. In fact we have had two new business starts created in the city from this exciting competition. I am delighted that BiG Challenge is in its third year, these students are vital to our city’s future success and I’m looking forward to meeting some of the teams and following their journey through the competition.”

 

For more information about The BiG Challenge, or to enter the competition, please log on to www.bigchallenge.biz or call 0800 043 55 22.