London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames

Next stop was Richmond Council to talk about their young entrepreneur competition. I met with Sean Gillen, Economic Development Manager.

The young entrepreneur competition ran last year, was open to 18-24 year olds and offered a 2,000 pound startup prize for the winner. In addition every entrant received a free business taster course at the local college. Entrants provide a short overview of their idea (250 words only) initially and then a longer plan if they progress to the next round. All entramts who reach the final round receive a full day of 1 on 1 coaching to assist with their business. Unfortunately the application numbers were low in the first instance and the program. With such a low barrier to entry and a great prize something didn't add up and different methods of reaching the target audience are being considered. Whilst it was this competition that brought the council to my attention it was some of their upcoming programs that really grabbed my attention.

Sean has a new program in development based around supporting social enterprises. He was kind enough to share with me the details and a complete outline of the new program.

Sean expressed that there was a clear need in the community for business support programs. Youth unemployment is high and the financial crisis also left its mark with corporate executives who lost their jobs. These two ends of the market have been looking at business as an opportunity to progress. Thanks to Sean for such a great open discussion and for the supplied resources.