Exceptional Events Management

My colleague Julie Thompson, Enterprise Ambassador within the Education Buusiness Partnership Team sent me this case study...

"Bramley Primary school puts on a production every Christmas but inevitably there are some young people who do not get a part in the play. This year, instead of being redundant, 10 year 6 pupils became the events management company for the play: the ‘Bramley Play Organisers’. The school was looking to raise money and create some good PR and this became the company’s objective.

The young people were immediately excited by this real business challenge and they were totally engaged from the start. The company bid for a business start up loan of £50 from Education Leeds and one of the Enterprise Ambassadors acted as Business Consultant for the duration of the project. Pupils were elected into roles matched to their skills and qualities including, PR Executive, Catering Adviser, Logistics and Finance Managers.

The team worked brilliantly to manage the event. They approached ‘Gregg’s’ who became their official sponsor, donated mince pies and Christmas biscuits while paying a fee of £75 to advertise in the programme. The play was promoted and marketed so effectively that tickets quickly sold out, making these pupils feel very important. The business loan was used to provide their guests with a range of refreshments, with prices set to ensure a profit.

Through their skills in meeting and greeting their guests, their commitment to health and safety and their innovative business decisions the company made £ 318 in profit for the school. They promoted and sold programmes, held a raffle and set up a deal with year 3 who made biscuits for them to sell at the event.

David Harrison, the headteacher commented, ‘this is a fantastic opportunity for children to learn on the job, it gives them an insight into logistics and the amount of work that goes into making things happen. These children took ownership of the event, it allowed them to be creative and feel part of a real working team.’

Jack Clark, head of PR for the company, offers the following advice for other Year 6 students who may be thinking about managing an event in their school: ‘it’s a really good thing to do because it improves your skills in working in a group. The best way to manage an event is to work together as a team and to share and listen to each others ideas, also to not be scared to disagree with people.’

By using the school production as an enterprise, the whole school have been able to be involved, increasing motivation and aspiration. The whole event had a sense of purpose and engaged everyone from start to finish."

There are so many ways in which we can engage young people in managing and delivering real activities in our schools from publications and websites to open days and events management, from art exhibitions and concerts to recycling and environmental projects. The future is brilliant especially where it is designed, managed and delivered by children and young people!
Chris