Three primary schools from across Wales have been named winners of the 2025 Enterprise Troopers competition, each receiving £2,500 to support their school following the success of their pupil-led enterprise projects.
The national competition, delivered by Careers Wales as part of the Welsh Government’s Big Ideas Wales initiative, aims to develop essential entrepreneurial attitudes in young learners, encouraging problem-solving, communication, and organisational skills, while building their confidence in literacy and numeracy.
The competition offers a unique opportunity for primary schools in Wales to showcase not only their entrepreneurial spirit, but their creativity, commitment to sustainability, and their local communities.
This year’s awards recognised achievements in three areas:
- Creativity and Innovation: Ysgol Acrefair, Wrexham – for their biodiversity and bee awareness campaign
- Eco/Sustainability: Ysgol Halfway, Llanelli – for their recycled crafts and eco-friendly product enterprise promoting Welsh language
- Social/Community Impact: Cwm Glâs Primary School, Swansea – for their pupil-run savings bank and pop-up café
Each school impressed judges with the originality, teamwork and purpose behind their entries.
Nikki Lawrence, Chief Executive of Careers Wales, said…..
“It’s amazing to see what young learners can achieve when they’re given the chance to be creative and take the lead. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners – and to every school that took part.
For over a decade, the Enterprise Troopers competition has helped to broaden young people’s horizons, nurturing entrepreneurial mindsets from an early age. By developing these core skills in creativity, problem-solving, and resilience, we’re not only boosting confidence in the classroom – we’re helping to shape a future workforce that’s ready to build a stronger, more dynamic economy for Wales.”
Ysgol Acrefair in Wrexham took home the Creativity and Innovation award. Pupils launched a campaign to create more wildlife-friendly spaces, producing and selling bee-themed bookmarks, seed bombs and bird boxes to promote awareness and raise funds.
Ceri Halley, teacher at Ysgol Acrefair told us….
“Throughout the project, the children developed a wide range of skills – from research and organisation to problem-solving and critical reflection. This competition has truly been the highlight of our year and a rich, purposeful learning experience for everyone involved.”
Ysgol Halfway in Llanelli were named winners in the Eco/Sustainability category for Pethau Bach (“Little Things”), a pupil-run business that aimed to promote the Welsh language. Pupils created greeting cards, magnets and beeswax wraps using recycled and natural materials.
Carys Davies, enterprise lead at Ysgol Halfway added…..
“We’re proud that our ideas celebrated the Welsh language and helped the environment, and it’s shown the pupils that even small actions can make a big difference.”
In the Social/Community Impact category, Cwm Glâs Primary School in Swansea impressed judges with two initiatives: Acoins, a pupil-led savings bank, and the CLIC Café, a pop-up café for families that helped pupils develop skills in food preparation, hospitality and teamwork. More than 45 pupils took part.
Jemma Kelleher, Maths and Numeracy lead at Cwm Glâs Primary School told us….
“Our pupil-led initiatives, Acoins Bank and the CLIC Café, have empowered children from Year 2 to Year 6 to take on meaningful roles through a formal application process that mirrors real-world experiences. The impact has been wide-reaching – pupils are growing in confidence and independence, staff have seen increased engagement and wellbeing, and families feel more connected to the life of the school.”
Cabinet Secretary for Education, Lynne Neagle, said:….
“I’m delighted to congratulate the three winning schools on their success at the 2025 Enterprise Troopers Awards. Each of the winners demonstrated their creativity and entrepreneurial thinking and are inspiring examples of how education can connect learning with real-world experience.
I also want to thank all the schools that took part in this competition for their hard work and innovation. The Enterprise Troopers competition perfectly demonstrates how we can nurture entrepreneurial thinking whilst building hands on essential skills in creativity, problem-solving, maths, teamwork, communication.”
