A new partnership between Oldham’s Enterprise Trust (OET) and The Prince’s Trust has been announced in order to support the town’s young entrepreneurs.
The Prince’s Trust has helped over 86,000 young people to start their own business – and now they’re offering the chance for the next generation to get involved. The Prince’s Trust work with 18 to 30-year-olds living in the UK to turn big ideas into a reality.
OET will work with The Prince’s Trust to find the next generation of Oldham’s business leaders. The Enterprise Trust will source budding new Start Ups aged 18 to 30 and pass them on to The Prince’s Trust Enterprise programme. They will receive free business support training and be allocated a business mentor from our networks of business support volunteers. The Enterprise Programme has four stages:
- Information session- find out more about the Enterprise programme
- Interactive Workshops – Over six days applicants get to meet like-minded people. They’ll also have the chance to speak to experienced business mentors covering everything from business planning and marketing to sales, budgeting and tax.
- Build your Business – After the workshop it’s time to start building your business. The Prince’s Trust will provide you with a mentor to support you as you plan and test your ideas. You’ll even have the opportunity to apply for funding.
- Launch – Before launch, you’ll present your business plan to the Business Launch Group. Their job is to ensure your idea is viable and sustainable. Don’t worry, there are no dragons here. It’s designed to be a positive experience for you – and to ensure there are no weak points in your plan.
Once the business has been launched and up and running for 6 months then the Enterprise Programme “graduates” can also apply for an OET Grant funding of £1,000 to help their business “kick on”.
Over the last 7 years, OET – thanks to a donation from the Stoller Charitable Trust – has made 188 funding awards totalling over £1 million that have led to 357 sustained jobs. It’s estimated the economic benefit to the town is around £7 million.
Dave Benstead, Chair of Oldham Enterprise Trust, said: “Oldham Enterprise Trust is pleased to partner with such a well-known organisation like The Prince’s Trust to further support Oldham’s budding young entrepreneurs at this time of economic crisis, helping them to take charge of their economic destiny”
Nicola Jeffries, Prince’s Trust Operations Manager, said: “The Prince’s Trust is thrilled to partner with Oldham Enterprise Trust to find and support the business leaders of the future. The Oldham Enterprise Programme will help develop and protect the entrepreneurial spirt of aspiring business owners during an undoubtedly challenging time for young people.”