Going global is the goal

GOING GLOBAL:  Ben Abberstein of AFC Bournemouth Community Trust with Harewood College students as they start their joint business venture to tap the Cherries into the American market.

GOING GLOBAL: Ben Abberstein of AFC Bournemouth Community Trust with Harewood College students as they start their joint business venture to tap the Cherries into the American market.

Enterprising students have joined forces with AFC Bournemouth to help the Premier League side achieve its goal of going stateside.

The Year 9 and 10 students from Avonbourne and Harewood colleges are tackling ideas on how to get the Cherries a bigger fan base in the US.

They are kick starting this marketing drive as part of a national enterprise competition run by the Premier League, which uses the power of professional football to engage young people in business.

Called the Premier League Enterprise Challenge, this competition gives young people the chance to work with their local professional football club on an actual business proposition.

And the youngsters from Avonbourne and Harewood are now holding regular workshops with AFC Bournemouth to hatch their American pitch tactics together.

GOING GLOBAL:  Gemma Cuss of AFC Bournemouth Community Trust with an Avonbourne College student as they start their joint business venture to tap the Cherries into the American market.

GOING GLOBAL: Gemma Cuss of AFC Bournemouth Community Trust with an Avonbourne College student as they start their joint business venture to tap the Cherries into the American market.

AFC Bournemouth’s Head of Community, Steve Cuss, said: “We are delighted to be working with Avonbourne Trust and the Premier League on the exciting PL Enterprise project.

“The lessons provide students with the opportunity to look at the business side of football utilising research and presentation skills to develop their own ideas to present the judging panel.”

It was a busy entrepreneurial week at Avonbourne Trust.

In addition to the work taking place with AFC Bournemouth, the Trust also staged week-long business activities for all its students.

The four schools of Avonbourne Trust – Avonwood Primary, Avonbourne College, Harewood College and Avonbourne Sixth Form – spent all week showcasing their entrepreneurship, culminating in a Dragons’ Den-style contest.

In the end the judges – Year 12 Business Studies students playing the parts of Peter Jones and co – chose three winning teams to receive a share of £200 funding for their social enterprise ideas.

A team of girls from Avonbourne were the winners with their JK Rowling-inspired fantasy film nights to raise money for charity.

Taking second and third place was two teams from Harewood for a book recycling scheme and a ‘create your own whirlpool kit’ invention.

Avonbourne Trust’s CEO, Debbie Godfrey-Phaure, said: “We are very excited to be joining forces with AFC Bournemouth and getting our students to tackle such a high-profile and global business challenge.

“As a business and enterprise trust all our schools are very much about preparing students for employment and bringing out the entrepreneur in them all.

“The work with AFC Bournemouth coincided with our annual enterprise week and every student, from our youngest primary children to our sixth formers, has been given the opportunity to put their business skills to the test.”

 

Note to editors: For more information please contact Rachel Read, account director at Deep South Media, on 01202 534487.