School challenge creates go getters

Stuart Powell, 31, is supporting Youth Enterprise in their bid to beat youth unemployment and inspire more youngsters to start their own businesses.

The charity is focusing on 10 towns across the country where youth unemployment is at its worst, including Leeds, as part of its Save a Lost Generation campaign.

Stuart, of Earslheaton, took part in the Young Enterprise company programme as a teenager and now runs his own management training firm, Inspiring Influence.

Stuart said his experience with the programme, which sees groups of pupils run real companies for a year with the help of local businessmen, led him to becoming an entrepreneur at the age of 26.

He said: “It really opened my eyes and inspired me.

“Working with a team, having an idea, it was a very practical experience that lasted over the course of a school year, as opposed to reading a case study in a business lesson at school.”

Stuart is the chairman of the West Yorshire board for Young Enterprise and believes inspiring the next generation of businessmen is crucial to securing the country’s economic recovery.

He said: “I believe every kid should have access to programmes like this because for me, it fundamentally affected the way I thought and what my future would look like.

“The more children experience it, the better returns for the economy.”

Businesses can back the campaign by calling Duncan Lewis on 07794478932.

Schools interested in taking part can call Ellen Wood on 07917686908.