Moate students win junior category at enterprise awards

Teenage entrepreneurs from Moate, Kilbeggan and Mullingar schools will represent Westmeath at this year’s Student Enterprise Programme National Final on Thursday, May 9

The students all took part in the Westmeath Final on March 5, held at the Golden Island Shopping Centre, Athlone. An estimated 1000 students from Westmeath schools took part in the annual programme locally.

The enterprise education initiative, funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland and delivered by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities throughout the country, saw over 28,000 students from just under 500 secondary schools across the country take part in 2022 / 2023.

The programme supports students to create, design and market their own business, all with the hope of reaching the National Final.

Winner of the Junior Category, was the team Eco Estate, from Moate Community School, involving students Will O'Brien, Conor Cunniffe, Aodhan Curren and Jack McGuinness

Winner of the Intermediate Category, Silk and Ivory from Mercy Secondary School will be representing the county at the final by Odhran Claffey.

In the Senior Category of the competition, Westmeath will be represented by a team from St Finian's College, Mullingar. Hatch It Out Chickens by students John Glennon, Brian Dillon and Jamie Gaffney includes an hatch your own chickens pack and also an educational aspect to the business.

Special guests at the Westmeath Final included Cllr Liam McDaniel (Cathaoirleach) and Barry Kehoe, Chief Executive (Interim).

Speaking at the county final, Christine Charlton, Head of Enterprise of Local Enterprise Office Co Westmeath congratulated the students, saying: “We have a very successful student enterprise programme here in Co Westmeath, with 13 local schools taking part this year. Our national finalists are excellent ambassadors for the programme and we wish them the very best of luck on May 9, and we will be there to support them.

What our students are learning from the programme is that with the right supports and encouragement, they can take an idea from the classroom and develop it into a real-life business.

The skills they learn along the way, such as business planning, market research, selling and team-work, will help them become more entrepreneurial throughout their future careers”.

The local students will be competing against hundreds of other student entrepreneurs from all over Ireland at the Student Enterprise Programme National Final, taking place in the Mullingar Park Hotel on May 9