At Hobsonville Point Secondary School, ‘Enterprise 4 Everyone’
is a project with the overarching aim of generating funds
through small business to benefit the Hobsonville community.
The entire school of 240 year 9 & 10 students are involved, all
working to help their partner charity, KidsCan. Student’s work
collaboratively to plan and problem solve. Through the process
of entrepreneurship, a range of business skills such as marketing,
budgeting and generating a product and service have been
developed. We caught up with teacher Sarah Wakeford, to find
out more about the project.

The project started with a ‘what if’ session. Can you tell us
a bit about this?

We got kids into groups and gave them four random items and
they had to come up with a product design using these items
that would fit a market demand e.g. a lady needing to get to her
mailbox but can’t walk. They did four different scenarios – with
the message of ‘be creative and think outside the box’.

The students had the chance to interact and meet stallholders
from the Hobsonville Point farmers market – the students asked
questions and found out as much as they could about what it is
like to be a stallholder at the market. This prepared them well and
got them excited for what was to come.

Then we did an upcycling workshop – and they used Pinterest to
come up with the best ideas of products using recycled materials.
Students had fun throughout the 120-minute session.

Can you describe how the student’s chose the areas for
their products and how they developed their ideas?

Guides, who are teachers, facilitate projects; we average 15-18
students per guide. We had a speed dating session where guides
had one minute to explain their strengths (usually subject based e.g.
food, music) and their initial ideas for an enterprise. Then students
selected a guide based on their own thoughts and interests and
passions – they had to select a first, second and third option. They
had time to talk with their peers to form groups too.

How does it run in the school?

We have a project-learning programme each Wednesday
afternoon, for 2 x 90 minute blocks. The entire school is involved
and there are 17 guides for 240 students.

How do students raise funding to start their business?

Students had to fill in a business plan and a funding application.
These were then submitted to the school’s Business Manager. We
went through the application and the business plan and, if it made
financial sense, they could have access to a maximum of $250
– half of this was a grant and half is a loan, to be repaid once
sales are made. Teams with unrealistic or inaccurate plans and
applications were told to resubmit.

Tell us about the roles mentors played.

Each guide is responsible for providing an out of school
experience in every project, so this often involved mentors. We
had help from stall holders from the farmers market e.g. The
Relish Group had a lady come and work with them for two weeks.

We had Pallet Kingdom come into the school for three weeks and work
with an upcycling furniture group and we had Glen from Mytours app
development helping our heritage trail app students. A parent who is an
accountant kindly gave up her time to visit groups and check through
their business plans. We had all sorts of things going on each week.

How did the market go?

It was a HUGELY successful day – fantastic community turn
out – the Hangar 3 cutting boards sold out in 30 minutes – they
made $1,170, amazing huh! We think we raised about $3,000 for
KidsCan. The primary school also came and set up stalls as well;
so a nice bubbly feeling with heaps of kids.

Six groups are going to sell at the Hobsonville Point Farmers Market
this weekend too, which is cool.