Make Your Mark Wth A Tenner students challenged to make £1.2m in one month

Around 30,000 students across the nation have taken up Peter Jones’ challenge of turning £10 into a projected £1.2m in just one month with their own community-minded, enterprising ideas, as part of Enterprise UK’s Make Your Mark with a Tenner campaign.

A £10 note has been given to each of the young people aged 19 and under registered to take part, with the challenge to come up with creative and enterprising ideas that make money and make a difference – and to return that £10 at the end of the month.

Winners will be chosen from three categories: under 11s, 11-14 year olds and 14-19 year olds – with winners selected for the best business idea, the most profit generated and the positive impact made on their community. In 2009 16,000 young people took part in the competition and the top 100 entries generated an average individual profit of £42.

The children taking part have the chance to win the money can’t buy prize of a one to one with a leading entrepreneurs including Peter Jones, Eden Project founder Tim Smit and CEO of Firebox and Moshi Monsters Michael Acton Smith. Six winners will also each be awarded £100 start up capital and support from a business mentor to help them develop their entrepreneurial ideas.

Make Your Mark with a Tenner is backed by a team of leading businessmen and women, including the competition’s mastermind, serial entrepreneur Oli Barrett. Entrepreneur Peter Jones, the founders of Bebo Michael and Xochi Birch, and the Big Lottery Fund are financial backers of the challenge, lending a total of £400,000 to students across the UK for the month of March.

Launching the competition, Peter Jones, Chair of Enterprise UK said: “Make Your Mark with a Tenner empowers young people to make their ideas happen. We know that young people are increasingly concerned about the challenges society faces, and we’re aiming to show young people that by acting on an enterprising idea, it is possible to make money and a real difference.

“Make Your Mark with a Tenner harnesses the unrivalled energy and creativity of young people. Their fantastic achievements increase each year that we run it, proof that if you trust young people to act entrepreneurially they will rise to the challenge.”

Enterprise UK’s Deputy Chief Executive Scott Cain said: “Make Your Mark with a Tenner is all about trusting young people to show their tenacity and entrepreneurial skills. Young Brits prove themselves to be a brilliant investment.”

Margaret Cooney, Big Lottery Fund’s Deputy Director Policy and Partnerships (England), said: “BIG has a proud history of supporting projects for young people which give them the skills and ambition to make their lives better. This is a unique opportunity to get some real hands on experience of entrepreneurship with real money, and offers a chance for initiative and creativity to shine through.”