Who’s Involved – Public Sector: East Renfewshire Council

Narrator: In 2007 East Renfrewshire Council, in partnership with Young Enterprise Scotland, established a project called 'Stairway to Success'.

'Stairway to Success' is a 12 month programme targeted at students with additional support needs and various social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. The programme aims to develop confidence and (re)engage pupils, through a school and authority wide enterprise project.

Students from St Ninian's, Barrhead, St Luke's, Woodfarm and Mearns Castle High Schools are given the opportunity to set up and run their own business. Pupils adopt roles such as Managing Director, Sales Director, Advertising Manager and Finance Manager and decide on the business model that best suits the needs of their business

Each School can modify the programme to meet the specific needs of the students, but all schools compete in authority-wide events throughout the year.

Part way through the programme, students are given the opportunity to take part in an authority-wide trade fair. The trade fair gives them the chance to interact with the public in order to promote and sell their various products. Students are judged in various categories, such as 'Best Sales Strategy', 'Best Presented Stall', 'Most Imaginative Product or Service', 'Most Successful Business' and 'Best Salesperson'.

Pupil 1 – Advertising Manager: I’m the Advertising Manager for St Luke’s Industries. This project has been really good for me because it’s given me more confidence in bigger groups. Before the Craft Fair I was nervous because I didn't speak to big crowds like that, and I didn't know anybody – except for the pupils that came with me. I felt really proud of myself because I stood and sold stuff in front of the public, which is not something I could do before. I did it.

Enterprise Development Officer (East Renfrewshire Council) : The Stairway 2 Success programme aims to develop confidence in the pupils; to reengage them in the activities at the school.

In terms of the life skills, they obviously get involved in things like planning, teamwork, negotiating, you’re cooperating with each other, listening to each other. I think all of these are skills that you would use anywhere.

Pupil 2: I was a wee bit excited but also nervous at the Craft Fair. When the Craft Fair was finished I was proud of myself because I worked really hard making all the stuff for the Craft Fair. It made me confident speaking to people that I don’t know.

Pupil 3 - Business Manager: One thing I never knew about businesses is how efficiently you have to run them. When I came into the group first, I thought, ‘Well, we’re just going to be here and selling a couple of things.’ Then I see how much work we had to put into it and that just changed my complete opinion.

It showed how businesses work together and how they do things, because if you get businesses where there is one person doing all the work, then it isn’t exactly helpful.

The life skills that I have built together from this are: cooperation, which we’ve had to do a good bit of, and also having to communicate with others. So I will take them in when I leave high school.