Kanturk students off to enterprise finals

TEENAGE entrepreneurs from Scoil Mhuire Kanturk will represent North Cork at this year’s Student Enterprise Programme national finals.

The finals will return to Croke Park on Friday, May 5 , for the first time since 2019.

In the senior category, North Cork will be represented by Oisin Bourke, Jack Hooper, Rachel Morton, Ava Fisher, and Kathlyn Morrissey from ‘Plant and I’ team, Scoil Mhuire Kanturk.

The students all took part in the North Cork final on March 14 at Springfort Hall Hotel, which was attended by hurling All-Star and Student Enterprise Programme ambassador, Sean Finn.

Congratulating the students, Mayor of the County of Cork Danny Collins, said: “In what has been a particularly challenging couple of years for students, the programme has offered them an outlet outside of the usual school demands. What 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 teamwork, will help them become more entrepreneurial throughout their future careers. Congratulations to all those who took part in this year’s competition.”

The enterprise education initiative, funded by the Government through Enterprise Ireland and delivered by the 31 local enterprise offices in local authorities throughout the country, saw over 25,000 students from just under 500 secondary schools take part in 2021/2022.

The programme supports students to create, design, and market their own businesses, all with the hope of reaching the national finals.

Head of enterprise at the local enterprise office North Cork, Kevin Curran, said: “North Cork has had great success over the years, with ‘Smooth Remove’, from Boherbue Community School, going on to win first place in the national awards in 2019 in the highly competitive senior category, and ‘Wrap it Up’, from Presentation Secondary School, Mitchelstown, picking up the Best Display Award.

“Boherbue also won the National Innovation Award last year, with ‘Pole Pals’. We are very proud of the calibre of entries this year and look forward to supporting our finalists in Dublin.”

Chief executive of Cork County Council, Tim Lucey, acknowledged the “very successful Student Enterprise Programme in North Cork”, with over 650 students from 15 local schools taking part this year.

“Our national finalists are excellent ambassadors for the programme and we wish them the very best of luck at the final at Croke Park on May 5.”