More than 400 S2 pupils from The James Young High School and Whitburn Academy recently took part in The Centre, Livingston’s first Retail Entrepreneurship Awards, giving young people the opportunity to develop campaign ideas and gain an insight into how their local shopping centre operates.
Working in teams, pupils were challenged to create an original idea that would enhance The Centre’s retail and food offering, introduce a new experience for young people, or explore ways to make the shopping centre more sustainable.
The project was designed to give pupils hands-on experience in entrepreneurship, marketing and teamwork while encouraging fresh thinking and creativity.
The challenge asked pupils to think through the full campaign process, from developing a concept and carrying out research to planning delivery, setting timelines and measuring success.
After developing their ideas in the classroom, finalist teams from both schools presented their campaigns directly to The Centre’s management team. Finalists from The James Young High School visited The Centre’s boardroom to pitch their ideas, while the judging panel visited Whitburn Academy to hear presentations from their finalists.
The awards were later presented at each school, recognising the creativity, effort and collaboration shown throughout the project.
At The James Young High School, Sleek Street received the award for Best Innovative Campaign and Guardians of the Earth received Best Sustainable Campaign.
At Whitburn Academy, Puppy Pilates received Best Innovative Campaign, while Greener Livingston was recognised with both Best Sustainable Campaign and Best Overall Campaign.
Runner-up teams received personalised framed certificates and a £100 team gift card.
The Greener Livingston team also received an additional £100 gift card for being selected as the overall winners, along with a £125 gift card to enjoy lunch at The Centre.
All 400 pupils who took part across both schools received a Certificate of Achievement in recognition of their contribution and participation.
Suzy Muirhead, PTC Social Subjects & Modern Languages at The James Young High School, said:
“We are incredibly proud of all our S2 Business Education pupils, who developed their ideas, thinking like real entrepreneurs by planning their campaigns, working within a budget, and considering how to bring their concepts to life. From innovative marketing ideas to environmentally friendly solutions, their creativity and teamwork have truly shone.
“The competition not only gave our pupils an insight into business, marketing and entrepreneurship but also helped develop a range of meta skills. These included building confidence, communication and problem-solving skills, especially when pitching to The Centre, Livingston management team who we are very grateful to for making this partnership possible.”
Annya Anderson, Teacher of Business Education at Whitburn Academy, said:
“All of our students really enjoyed participating in the project. We were absolutely blown away by their enthusiasm and creativity during campaign development.
“It was fantastic to see them work together to solve problems and create realistic business ideas that could genuinely be brought to life.
“It was a proud moment for the Business Department to see our winners receive their awards and certificates. We’re looking forward to visiting The Centre soon and enjoying the prizes they received.”
Patrick Robbertze, Centre Director at The Centre, Livingston, said:
“It’s been brilliant to see so many young people get involved and approach the challenge with such enthusiasm and creativity.
“The ideas presented covered a wide range of themes and showed real thought, research and attention to detail. The standard across both schools made judging incredibly difficult.
“We’d like to thank all of the teachers who supported the project and helped bring it to life in the classroom.
“We’re looking forward to continuing to work with local schools and welcoming future participants when the project returns next year.”