National Award for Local Enterprise Office South Cork Students at Enterprise Finals

Students from South Cork have taken Best Display prize at this year’s Student Enterprise Programme National Finals. Pictured are St. Marys SEP Winners Muireann and Sinead pictured on stage with Enterprise Ireland, Teri Smith & Head of Enterprise, Carlow, Kieran Comerford.

Students from South Cork have taken Best Display prize at this year’s Student Enterprise Programme National Finals.  The finals of the Local Enterprise Office initiative took place in Mullingar on the 8th of May.

Supported by Local Enterprise Office South Cork, students from St Mary’s Macroom won Best Display in the Senior Category. The winning students were Muireann Kerry and Sinead D'souza, who worked under the guidance of their teacher, Arlene O’Donoghue, and programme coordinator Grainne Carmody. Their student enterprise ‘Ean Bia’ was a wild garden bird feed with a focus on sustainability.

The event was hosted by broadcasters Rick O’Shea and Louise Cantillon, and they were joined during the ceremony by Peter Burke, T.D. Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Employment as he announced the winners across the three main categories on the day.  

There were 85 student businesses in contention across three main categories for the final in what is Ireland’s largest entrepreneurship programme for second level students. The initiative, funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland and delivered by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities throughout the country, saw over 30,000 students from 500 secondary schools across the country take part.

South Cork was also represented in the Junior Category by Furrbidden Pawetry (Caoilann O'Donovan) and in the Intermediate Category by Perfect Paws (Bess O'Leary, Olivia Connolly, Ella Matthews), all from Coláiste Muire - Realt na Mara, Crosshaven.

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Joe Carroll said,

The Student Enterprise Programme continues to be a powerful platform for uncovering the next generation of Irish innovators and entrepreneurs. This year’s projects showcased incredible variety and talent, from smart agricultural solutions and handcrafted goods to digital tools for pet owners and sustainable seaweed ventures. What’s most exciting is that the journey doesn’t end here. The National Finals are often the beginning of something much bigger, and we’re proud to support students as they take their first steps into the world of business. We believe these students hold huge potential to shape Ireland’s economic future and make their mark on a global stage.

The National Final students, who competed across three categories, Junior, Intermediate and Senior, were all attendance on the day exhibiting their businesses which were judged by a team of national businesses experts and mentors.  Each student enterprise was challenged with creating, setting up and running their own business, which must show sales of their service or product.   The judging panel included business owners and representatives from enterprise agencies and associated bodies.   

The Student Enterprise Programme is one of several initiatives that the Local Enterprise Offices run, to foster entrepreneurship across the country. Others include Local Enterprise Week, the National Enterprise Awards, National Women’s Enterprise Day and Local Enterprise Showcase. The Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities are funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland.