Inspiring Entrepreneurship

Female entrepreneurship is high on the Government’ s agenda, so there has never been a better time to be a woman in business. Entrepreneurship Co-ordinator and Business A Level Teacher, Emma Wimhurst, explains how our Entrepreneurship in Education Programme prepares girls to thrive in the workplace and make the most of the opportunities available.

Having started my own cosmetics business at the kitchen table, generating a multi-million-pound turnover and employing 15 people, I am passionate about inspiring and supporting young women to thrive in business and in the workplace.

I am very fortunate to be teaching Business A Level and running an Entrepreneurship Programme in a school that was built on an entrepreneurial vision. This is firmly enshrined in one of our five strategic pillars: our commitment to preparing women of the future.

At Sherborne Girls, entrepreneurship is woven into our DNA. This is not just because we want girls to know how to start and run their own businesses but because we want them to be the best they can be, to create opportunities rather than wait for them, and to make a difference.

According to the UK Government, preparing women for the workplace is in the national interest, too. Female entrepreneurship has been identified as one of the greatest opportunities for economic growth in the 21st Century, prompting the publication of the Alison Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship in 2019. This triggered a commitment to increase female entrepreneurs by 600,000 by 2030, through education initiatives and financial support.

According to the World Economic Forum, the skills required to thrive in the workplace include complex problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, people management and co-ordinating well with others. Now in its third year, the Entrepreneurship in Education Programme created for Sherborne Girls develops these skills and more across all year groups.

The Programme is built on four key elements. First, we use real-life challenges set by real employers to foster problem-solving and confident decisionmaking, such as this year ’ s M5 NatWest “Go Green Challenge ” . Second, we give girls opportunities to learn from businesses within our thriving local community. Our L5, for example, take part in a i

“Coffee Shop Challenge

” in which they work in teams to create a new coffee shop concept, undertaking market research in Sherborne and benefiting from talks by the owners of some of the town ’ s cafés.

Third, the girls regularly hear from some of our many successful entrepreneurial alumnae. As part of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2022, for example, we hosted lunchtime talks with Hannah Mossman Moore (Jean London Ltd) and Thea Carroll (Property Consultant), who shared the highs and lows of their own business journeys.

Finally, and perhaps most powerfully, we take a genuinely cross-curricular approach to entrepreneurship. The skills, qualities and habits fostered by our programme are embraced and supported by all members of staff working in partnership to prepare women of the future. a dorm with others teaches you about e I believe the girls truly celebrate a unique u