02 Feb Essex County Council unveils green initiative to empower young entrepreneurs
Pupils in over 40 primary and secondary schools across Essex are gaining essential business and maths skills by creating their own eco-friendly playground shops from scratch.
Essex County Council has recently collaborated with Pupils Profit to enable children and young people, aged nine and above, to set up and operate their own ECO Refill shops on school premises. 41 schools, including those in Harlow, Chelmsford, Colchester and Harwich will be supplied with ECO Refill Shop Toolkits. The toolkits are designed to inspire school children to create their own business plan, apply for job roles, such as Sales or Finance Manager, and learn how to manage their very own business.
Louis Boyd, Director of Learning at The Trinity School in Colchester said: “Our Year 7, 8 and 9 students are very excited to officially open their ECO Refill shop in the coming weeks. Projects like this help teach business skills and environmental awareness in a fun and accessible way. It’s providing our students with a way to contribute to our local community.”
Operating monthly, the shops allow families and school staff to buy products straight from the playground. To help combat plastic pollution, the shops will stock refill packs, worth over £200, and include eco-friendly, affordably priced, bodywash, handwash and household cleaning products. All of the profits from the shop will be used to fund future purchases
Lizzie Gimblett, Founder at Pupils Profit said: “The ECO Refill project supports children across Essex to practice and build their numeracy and life skills, whilst encouraging greener habits in the wider school community. It’s amazing to see what children can achieve, and we’d love as many families as possible get involved and reduce plastic waste, whilst supporting the next generation’s entrepreneurial flare.”
The ECO Refill project is fully funded by Essex Year of Numbers, a £1.5m initiative launched in September 2023 to help children and young people of all ages thrive in numeracy. With initiatives and events taking place throughout the year, Essex Year of Numbers aims to close the grade gap for disadvantaged children in Essex and provide support and resources for teachers, carers and parents.
Councillor Tony Ball, Essex County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education Excellence, Lifelong Learning and Employability said: “Essex Year of Numbers empowers children of all ages to develop a lifelong love for numeracy.
“We want all children across Essex to feel more comfortable and confident when working with numbers. Initiatives such as the ECO Refill project, which strengthen business acumen, whilst also encouraging fun and creativity, play a crucial role in making children feel at ease with maths.”
