13 Focus on Framlingham College

Our A level Economics team called Titanic Investments that came third nationally in the London Institute of Banking and Finance, UK Student Investor Challenge Final. (Ben, Theo, Tom and Arthur).

Developing entrepreneurialism in our pupils

by Louise North, Principal of Framlingham College

The pandemic has upturned the working world. While many businesses have faced huge challenges, there has been a significant spike in the number of new start-ups – around 30 percent more businesses launched in December 2020 than the year before, according to the Financial Times.

The Office for National Statistics has also suggested that entrepreneurs will play a “vital role” in the UK’s recovery, noting particular opportunities in online retail. The next generation of entrepreneurs will emerge into this environment, and they’ll have significant advantages in terms of environmental, diversity, and technological awareness.

At Framlingham College, we pride ourselves on our entrepreneurial culture. We believe that fostering the skills such as creativity, resilience, and problem-solving that modern business demands, will set our pupils on the path to success as adults in a global society. Our Suffolk location, a county renowned for its entrepreneurialism, puts us at the centre of a thriving business hub. Some 60 percent of our parent body are business-owners and entrepreneurs themselves, and we draw on their expertise and experience in our entrepreneurial programme that challenges for our pupils from Year 7 upwards.

Supporting pupils in the classroom and beyond

The real world is far more complex than just high attainment . Aspiration and ambition permeates everything that we do at the College but we also put a large emphasis on essential life skills in our proactive programme designed for every pupil from age three up to 18.

Nurturing collaboration, cognitive flexibility, emotional intelligence, negotiation and leadership to name a few, in the classroom from an early age, are essential for all our pupils but it also ensures that young people with an aptitude for business will have all the personal skills they need by the time they are ready to start learning practical skills.

We recently added Business as a GCSE subject as well as A-level due to demand from our families. Our aim at both GCSE and A-level is to spark pupils’ imagination and teach commercial thinking and provide them with knowledge about identifying business opportunities, putting a business plan into practice, and growing a business through marketing.

Young people aren’t waiting until they’ve been in the world of business for a decade to set out on their own. Some of the most successful brands of recent times were launched by recent graduates. Gymshark, for instance, has made its founder a billionaire, and he started the business at just 20 years old, while the founder of the Cashmere app launched her project at age 24. It’s important to set pupils up to enter this competitive world so they can begin to pursue their personal goals as soon as they graduate, if not sooner.

It’s therefore vital to offer pupils the opportunity to hone their skills outside of the classroom. Our Titanic Investment team recently came third in the country at the national Student Investor Challenge, and we have supported one of our Year 13 pupils as he developed an app for his father’s restaurant business. Similarly, another Year 13 pupil has used her product design and computer science skills to launch a fashion business in lockdown, designing her garments to empower women. She has designed and created her own web platform from which to sell them.

Building networks

Networking is a fundamental part of having your own business. It’s a chance to meet likeminded individuals, exchange ideas, and discover potential colleagues. For young people, networking offers opportunities to find mentorship and receive advice from more experienced entrepreneurs and businesspeople. This is why we are eager to create an environment where entrepreneurs can meet one another, even after graduation. Framlingham College Business Club provides a valuable networking forum for current parents, former pupils, local businesses and friends of the College – offering career advice, internships, work experience, and help with our ‘Dragons Den’ activities. We draw on the expertise of those in the broader local community to facilitate real-world learning opportunities in business.

Creating tomorrow’s success stories

Framlingham College is lucky to collaborate with so many interesting companies and people in this wonderful, creative county.

We believe that as part of our educational offering, it is our responsibility to develop an entrepreneurial understanding as we equip and prepare all of our pupils’ to thrive in their changing adult world.

Fiona Bruce and Philip Mould featured an early version of Constable’s masterpiece in

the BBC’s Fake or Fortune

programme © BBC

Constable’s Kim Smith marks the 200th anniversary of The Hay Wain by looking at the many ways it’s been re-created over the years arresting milestone This year is a special one for Suffolk's famous son, John Constable, as it sees the 200th anniversary of the completion of his masterpiece The Hay Wain, a painting that is so intrinsically English it is said to be stamped on our DNA in the womb. The National Trust will be marking the milestone at the place that is his living landscape, the very pretty hamlet of Flatford, and a spotlight is bound to be shone on the