Oundle Charity Venturers
In many schools, under a Young Enterprise scheme or similar, thousands of students each year are given the opportunity of preparing for their working life in business by setting up and running their own company, supported by volunteer external advisers. They elect a board of directors from amongst their peers, raise share capital, and market and finance a product or service of their choice. At the end of the year they publish a report and accounts. The Young Enterprise scheme, running at Oundle since 1996, provided pupils with a practical understanding of marketing, financial planning, personnel management and many other skills associated with the day-to-day running of a small business. To date there have been a total of twenty groups, allowing over 200 pupils to benefit from the experience.
Helped by company mascot Humpo the Camel, the 2000-2001 Oundle team and their company Horizon achieved success in the YE Company Competition. In subsequent years Oundle companies have sold celebrity memorabilia, designer boxer shorts, and CDs featuring the vocal talents of OO Peter Morton.
In 2003 it was decided that more emphasis should be placed on the philanthropic role of school enterprise companies. Accordingly, Lunar and ZigZag, the two companies of the year, operated under the umbrella title of Oundle Charity Venturers (OCV). ZigZag has acted as the business arm of the newspaper The Oundle Chronicle, which has proved to be a commercial success, finding a ready market outside the School among members of the public, and now operates as part of OCV.
Most recently, OCV has expanded into three different companies, which each initiated diverse concepts to raise money for a charity of their choice. Cold Humps has marketed soft black fleecy scarves emblazoned with a red camel to support the prestigious and worthwhile charity Merlin (the charity supported by Daily Telegraph readers following the aftermath of the Tsunami disaster). OSOP (Oundle School Of Pop), teamed up with the Northamptonshire School of Flying to raise awareness and funds for disabled aviators by organizing a Valentine’s Charity Ball. Finally, a team of pupils came up with a wickedly delicious idea with their enterprise company Sweet Charity. The tempting, locally-made fudge is presented in a specially designed tin illustrated with local landmarks, and was a definite boost to the Parkinson’s disease charity that the group chose to support.