Pupils draw on ideas to win awards
YOUNG business brains are writing themselves a bright future after a creative idea involving crayons helped them to win three national awards.
A team of pupils from Garth Primary School in Maesteg entered the Welsh National Enterprise Troopers Competition, where they pitched an idea to recycle old crayons into new ones made into the shapes of letters.
A panel of judges loved their eco-friendly concept so much that the pupils – Naomi Hughes, Grace Williams, Eleri Hembrow and Libbie Thomas – won first prize in the Team Spirit and Business Engagement categories, while teachers Emma Tarr and Hayley Phillips also got in on the act, picking up the Teacher Trooper award.
Organised by Big Ideas Wales and the Welsh Government, the competition was held at the Millennium Centre in Cardiff and involved 15 other schools from across Wales.
Headteacher Julie Thomas said: “We are extremely proud of the team who have represented Garth Primary with distinction. At school we run a weekly enterprise club for our Key Stage 2 pupils, as well as an annual enterprise fortnight.
“The girls’ Creative Crayons idea went down a storm so we thought it would be a strong contender for the national awards, but we were still overwhelmed by their success.”
It’s the second year in a row that Garth Primary has won honours in the national competition, and Coun Charles Smith, cabinet member for education and regeneration, said: “The pupils had to present their idea to an audience as well as the judges, all of whom are successful business people.
“They had to describe the challenges they had faced and displayed excellent skills that will benefit them greatly in the future, such as setting and achieving goals, working co-operatively, generating ideas and solving problems.”
He added: “Congratula- tions to these budding entrepreneurs and to all of the staff at Garth Primary School who have been involved with this fantastic initiative.”