get involved...
News
Top 10 GCSE schools all do Young Enterprise
Paul Eastham — 26 Jan 2012
All ten schools that performed best in the 2011 GCSE league tables take part in activities organised by Britain's largest business education charity, a new survey reveals.
Students attending those institutons that achieved the highest grades get the chance to run their own real companies for a year with Young Enterprise.
It is not the first time that remarkable link between the charity and exceptional academic performance has been noted. A report by the school standards watchdog, Ofsted, in June 2011, which summarised three years of inspection evidence from across the country, praised the organisation for its power to help lift achievement levels.
'Extra-curricular activities, such as Young Enterprise ...were a feature of those schools where the curriculum was judged to be good or outstanding,' said the report Economics, business and enterprise education A summary of inspection evidence: April 2007 to March 2010.
In the latest school league tables, Tiffin Girls' School was ranked top performer with 91.6 % A* or A grades at GCSE. There, 75 girls are running two Young Enterprise companies this year. One called Alpha has developed a product called the 'COLLAPSABOTTLE' a light, portable and rollable water bottle.
The second highest performer, Pate's Grammar School in Gloucestershire, has 18 students on the Companmy Programme. This year, 'Spark', a Pate's team, had an environmental theme, selling compostable kitchen equipment. Wilson's School in Surrey has 104 students running firms, while pupils from the Latymer School in Hammersmith are also taking part again. The school got to the National Final in 2011 with the 'Hold Up' team's headphone holder that is designed to stop wires tangling when listening to music.
Altrincham Grammar School for Girls has 25 students on the programme this year with a lot to live up to - the school was Trafford Young Enterprise champion in 2001. St Michael's Catholic Grammar School in Finchley has seven students this year on the course, Henrietta Barnett in Barnet has 20 budding entrepreneurs running teams called Onion and Popping Candy.
South Wilts Grammar School for Girls has 19 girls going to the prizes this year. In 2010 members of the school?s 'Spectrum' team picked up awards for 'Best Financial Performance' and 'Best Trade Stand.' At Chelmsford County High School for Girls Young Enterprise groups have worked on projects which have included the sale of Fairtrade goods, particularly chocolate.
Catherine Marchant, Young Enterprise Interim Chief Executive said: 'These remarkable results show that Young Enterprise's philosophy not only encourages enterprise and employability among students - it also boosts academic performance as well. No one underestimates the importance of high grades in Maths Science and English but employers are crying out for students who can do more than answer questions on an exam paper. At a time when more than 1 million young people are out of work young people need all the help they can get.'
Notes for editors:
- Ofsted report: Economics, business and enterprise education A summary of inspection evidence: April 2007 to March 2010. http://bit.ly/z8cRYc
- List of GCSE top performers based on: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/leaguetables/8723085/GCSE-results-2011-school-by-school.html
