Sunderland Students Shine at Dragon's Den-Style Social Enterprise Event

Delivered in partnership with Gentoo, Sunderland City Council, Together for Children and the Social Enterprise Academy (SEA), the event celebrated creativity, community spirit and young people's ambition to make a difference.

The initiative is part of the Social Enterprise Schools programme, which helps young people make a positive difference in their communities while building skills for life and work. Through the programme, pupils develop confidence, teamwork, empathy and resilience. It also introduces students to different career pathways, helping them connect their skills and interests to future opportunities.

Over recent weeks, mentors from Gentoo and Sunderland City Council worked closely with students to help shape their ideas and prepare for the final pitch. Pupils explored the social issues they care about most, while building their skills in public speaking, teamwork and business planning.

The student-led social enterprises pitched at the event included:

·       Sandhill View Academy - Smile
Smile focuses on men's mental health. The team sells sweets with uplifting messages and second-hand books wrapped in brown paper, promoting the idea of not judging a book by its cover and challenging stereotypes around men's mental health. They work closely with Space North East, which supports and raises awareness of men's mental health.

·       Red House Academy - Cheers Charms
Cheers Charms supports young people with exam stress while encouraging better recycling in school. Students sell charms with positive affirmations and use the income to fund new recycling bins for every classroom, supporting Sunderland's sustainability goals.

·       Christ's College Sunderland - Sunwell Bridge
Sunwell Bridge tackles hunger, poverty, cultural marginalisation and social isolation through a community hub. The project provides a safe space, brings people together and offers healthy, sustainable food alongside targeted events for minority groups. It is funded through a student-created book of poems and stories about Sunderland.

·       Hetton Academy - Calm Corner
Calm Corner aims to improve the life chances of the children and young people they seek to support by creating a sensory space within their academy. The initiative helps boost attendance, inclusivity and attainment by giving students a safe space to regulate their emotions using Calm Corner passes.

·       The Link School - Be Proud To Be Different
Be Proud To Be Different promotes celebrating individuality and building confidence. Students create and sell storybooks that highlight the value of being different, with proceeds going to the Bradley Lowery Foundation to support children with serious illnesses.

After pitching their ideas, students took part in a market-style showcase where they sold their products and promoted their causes. The event gave sponsors and partners from Gentoo, Sunderland City Council and representatives from Sunderland businesses the chance to meet the young entrepreneurs and see their ideas in action.

The panel of local "Dragons" brought a wealth of experience and encouragement. They included Stephen Flounders, Director of Regulatory & Business Services at Gentoo Group, Kimberley Richardson Director of Education from Together for Children, David Pattison, Business Investment Manager from Sunderland City Council, and Claire Wayman, Owner of Sunshine Cooperative.

Winners were announced following the pitches with Christ's College Sunderland's Sunwell Bridge taking the overall prize, winning £100 to support their enterprise along with the winner's trophy.

Other awards included:

·       The Link School - Be Proud To Be Different received Outstanding Recognition and a £50 prize

·       Red House Academy - Cheers Charms won Sustainability Champions and a £50 prize

·       Hetton Academy - Calm Corner won Most Creative Pitch and a £50 prize

·       Sandhill View Academy - Smile won Most Developed Enterprise and a £50 prize

Together for Children's Director of Education, Kimberley Richardson took on the role of 'Dragon' during the event, helping choose winning schools. Kimberley said: "It was incredibly inspiring to see the passion, creativity and confidence shown by all of the young people involved. Programmes like this not only support pupils to make a positive difference in their communities but also help them develop essential skills for their future education and careers. Every student who took part should be extremely proud of what they've achieved."

Stephen Flounders, Executive Director of Regulatory & Business Services at Gentoo Group and 'Dragon' said: "It was a real privilege to be part of this year's Dragon's Den. The standard across all of the schools was brilliant, and the ideas were thoughtful, creative and rooted in real issues young people care about. What stood out most was the confidence and passion the students showed, along with the skills they've developed along the way, from teamwork and communication to problem solving and leadership. Increasing employability and helping young people build skills and ambition is a key priority for us at Gentoo. Opportunities like this give them the chance to step outside the classroom, grow in confidence and realise what they're capable of. It's inspiring to see."

And Holly Old, a teacher from Sandhill School added: "The Social Enterprise School programme has been a great success for students in Sandhill View Academy. As a teacher, I wanted to lead on the programme as I had hopes it would help grow students' ambitions, transferrable skills and empathy.

"At first, students were unsure about giving up so much of their free time however I now have students knocking on my door every day asking for a social enterprise meeting in order to discuss growing our business more and making more money for our chosen charity - Space North East!

"The event on Tuesday was a great success, and students had a great sense of pride after delivering their presentation and selling the product they'd worked so hard on at their stall. The opportunity to be taught through first-hand experience has been priceless for these pupils and given them such a sense of achievement which I can see developing their growth mindset. The team at Social Enterprise Academy have been fantastic in giving support to our school with lots of workshops with local business owners and professionals - it has really been a privilege to be a part of."