Intellectual Development

Build Your Business Workshop

Students work together to create a business idea, design a product or service, understand money, and present their work to an audience.

Students taking part in Build Your Business Workshop
Intellectual Development National Schools Innovation Blueprint

Overview

What students will do

Develop ideas

Identify problems worth solving and create business ideas.

Build products

Design products, branding, pricing and marketing materials.

Present professionally

Pitch their business to judges, teachers or visitors.

Programme Structure

Rotational modules

Sessions rotate through six practical modules, each building towards the final professional outcome.

1

Finding a problem worth solving

2

Designing a product or service

3

Understanding money and pricing

4

Pitching to an audience

Professional Roles

Students work in professional roles

Every student takes on a role within their team, mirroring how professionals collaborate in the real world.

Chief Executive (CEO)

Leads a business by making strategic decisions and setting its direction.

Management Consultant

Helps organisations improve performance by solving business problems.

Angel Investor

Invests in promising business ideas and supports new entrepreneurs.

Skills Framework

CATAPULT skills students build

The CATAPULT Skills Framework™ underpins every session of this programme. Students particularly develop:

Ambition

Leadership

Communication

Problem Solving

Gallery

Build Your Business Workshop in action

Students taking part in Build Your Business Workshop

Choose Your Implementation Pathway

Three ways to deliver this programme

Choose the pathway that best fits your school's time, timetable and level of support.

Use Lite to introduce pupils to the programme, its real-world role and related careers.

Career Exposure

Promotional

Promotional poster / flyer View PDF

Evaluation

How this programme is evaluated

The National Schools Innovation Blueprint evaluates participation, engagement, development, programme outputs and implementation using the same booklet across every stndard and embedded programmes. They are recorded once using the shared Enrichment Activity evaluation form.

Complete the Staff Evaluation

Case Study

See how Ashlawn School delivered this programme

Ashlawn School piloted Build Your Business Workshop with Year 7 students over twelve weeks, testing engagement, confidence and how easy the resources were for staff to deliver.

Read the Case Study

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions

Approximately 2–3 hours before delivery.

Mainly Key Stage 3, although older students can also participate.

Yes. Student leaders can organise resources and support delivery.

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Ready to deliver Build Your Business Workshop?

Contact the National Schools Innovation Blueprint to get started.