Teenagers put on enterprising display

All the teams, made up of teenagers between 14 and 19 years old, were appearing at The John Laing Charitable Trust final of the Young Enterprise London competition last Thursday.

Michele McKendry, a director the charity Young Enterprise said: "These young people have moderate learning disabilities to the most severe.

"They set up and run their own businesses and even sell shares to family and friends.

"They open a real bank account. The whole experience can last over two years and helps them learn about business development and skills such as teamwork and risk building."

Each of the nine teams which made the final are also given business leaders to mentor them.

Michele added: "These children don't always have the experience of dealing with adults, apart from their teachers and parents, so it really helps in that respect."

The teams gave presentations to judges at the offices of Clifford Chance before showing them around their display stands.

One team, Smart Gift, created presents out of recyclable materials which they sold at areas such as the British Airways headquarters.

Chair of the team from Pield Heath House Roman Catholic School Rebecca Rodriguez said: "By being smart we can put a smile back on people's faces. As a team we had to share our ideas, become more confident and gain more experience with our skills.

"Each member had their own skills but to make them work we had to work together."

Other teams such as Reflex from St Philip's School, from the Royal Borough of Kingston, developed football courses for young people.

Meanwhile, The Olive School in Lambeth created gift cards which they raised over £300 from, two-thirds of which was given to the charity WaterAid.

Deputy manager of Young Creations 16-year-old Bai Kabia said: "We've got 10 different nationalities in our team of 12 who a few years ago could not speak much English.

"But we came together for this project six or seven months ago. We learnt business team work and helped eachother along the way."

Michele said the Young Enterprise charity, which is currently backed by Wharf companies including Citi, Credit Suisse and Clifford Chance, needed even more banking from big business.

She said: "We can do with much more as we don't have the resources. It would be great to get more backing from companies in this area."

Go to yelondon.com for more information.

Click here for the picture gallery of the competition.

The Winners

Best Trade Stand 
Beautiful Bits and Bobs - Linden Lodge School, central London
Muffin Bouquet- Plumstead Manor, south east London

Best Presentation 
Posyganza- Lewisham College, south London
Reflex - St Phillip's School, south west London

Best Product
2s company and Mapledown 9 - Mapledown School, north London
Young Creations - The Olive School, central London

Best Overall Company
Smart Gifts - Pield Heath School, west London
Young Creations - The Olive School, central London