Enterprise Week aims to create can-do culture

Nov 18 2008 by Karen Dent, The Journal

MORE than 400 events involving 60,500 people are taking place in the North East this week to encourage more entrepreneurial thinking across the region.

The fifth Government-backed Enterprise Week, launched yesterday by Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Business Secretary Peter Mandelson, is part of the inaugural Global Entrepreneurship Week. It brings together 77 countries and aims to encourage more people to start a business or social enterprise, or come up with innovative business ideas for their workplaces.

The number of events in the region has more than trebled from 137 last year to 436 this year. Entrepreneurial education is a key element of the campaign and a number of schools have come up with business or social enterprise ideas.

Castle View School in Sunderland is carrying out a One Water project, selling water and recycling bottles to raise money for charity. Scouts in Wideopen near Newcastle are taking part in a Scrapheap Challenge to create two racing pedalos, and students at Branksome Comprehensive School in the Tees Valley are starting an allotment to sell produce to local people.

The Make Your Mark campaign, which was founded by the CBI, the British Chambers of Commerce, the Federation of Small Businesses and the Institute of Directors, is behind Enterprise Week. Its independent chair is entrepreneur Peter Jones, of Dragons’ Den fame.

Organisers are determined that the poor economic outlook is not allowed to get in the way of enterprising ideas.

Lord Mandelson said: “Enterprise and innovation are the key to the UK’s future economic growth and success in today’s unsettled global market. Through initiatives such as Global Entrepreneurship Week, we can inspire the next wave of entrepreneurs to create a can-do culture.”

His view was echoed by Harry Rich, the Make Your Mark chief executive, who said enterprising ideas were vital to lead the UK out of recession and must be part of a global culture of entrepreneurship.

He said: “In times like these it might be tempting to adopt a protectionist ‘little Britain’ mentality, batten down the hatches and turn our backs on the world. That would be a disaster and Global Entrepreneurship Week captures the spirit of what we must do.

“We must re-double our efforts to foster international links, inspire our young entrepreneurs, connect them with each other and to take a global approach to global problems.”

For a full list of Enterprise Week events taking place in the North East, visit the website at www.enterpriseweek.org.uk/events