Kilgraston Young Enterprise Team historic win
Hungry For Honey, a young enterprise company founded by 23 Kilgraston pupils, has created a buzz with an unprecedented victory at the Young Enterprise Scotland (YES) regional competition. The team swept the board at the event, picking up all eight awards on offer including the top prize ‘Tayside Company of the Year 2024’ for their children’s book ‘Barbee and Her Adventures’ – a result never before achieved by any other school. The team also scooped the seven other awards including for ‘Best Company Report’, ‘Best Trade Stand’ and ‘Best Presentation’. The team, comprised of Upper and Lower Sixth pupils, impressed the judges with their innovative and sustainable approach to their business, as well as their exceptional marketing and presentation skills.
Hungry for Honey was created to compete in the annual YES Company competition. This provides students with hands-on experience in setting up and running their own businesses. Since the start of the 2023 school year, the Kilgraston team has worked hard to develop their book ‘Barbee and Her Adventures’ including a novel-writing workshop with local children’s author, Lindsay Hirst.
Kilgraston School’s Headteacher, Mrs Tanya Davie, expressed her pride in the team’s achievements, saying, “We are absolutely thrilled with Hungry for Honey’s success at the YES regional championships. Their hard work, creativity, and dedication to sustainable business practices have truly paid off, and we can’t wait to see what they will accomplish at the national level.”
Now as they prepare for the national finals in May, Hungry for Honey continues to inspire the Kilgraston School community and demonstrate the power of young people to create positive change through entrepreneurship and innovation.
The team’s book is available to buy in several local shops, including The Rose House in Perth, Broadslap Fruit Farm in Dunning, and The Wee Book Shop in Dollar. A beautifully illustrated children’s book, it tells the story of a special bee called, Barbee. The company’s team collaborated on the story, with some taking on the role of illustrators while others focused on writing. The team also utilised social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook to market their book and reach a wider audience.
Kilgraston pupil and Hungry for Honey CEO, Rebecca, Upper Sixth, said: “We’re thrilled to see our hard work pay off with this success and we are excited for the finals. Our team has worked tirelessly to create a high-quality product that appeals to children, and we’re excited to share it with even more people through the YES competition and expanded retail opportunities.”
Hungry For Honey’s future plans include expanding their reach to more shops and nurseries, as well as developing additional products that align with their mission of educating and entertaining young readers.
For more information on Hungry For Honey and their products, follow them on social media at Instagram handle is hungry.for_honey, Twitter handle is hungry_4_honey, Tiktok handle is hungry_for_honey and Facebook handle is Hungry For Honey
Being environmentally aware at Kilgraston
Looking after the planet and being environmentally aware are ongoing drives at Kilgaston with Kilgraston’s Headmistress, Mrs MacGinty leading the campaign. In recent years, Mrs MacGinty has led the staff and pupils to make changes to the school and their daily lives in a bid to do our bit to protect the environment.
These have included a wear it again day to promote the use of vintage fashion against fast fashion and its negative environmental impact. There are also regular assemblies on environmental issues and a no idling policy, which means visitors to the school are required to turn their engines off.
In 2020, Kilgraston’s Headmistress, Mrs MacGinty was a finalist at the i25 Awards. These awards celebrate the best in independent school sector, recognising the leading influencers and innovators. In this video, Mrs MacGinty, members of staff and pupils discuss some of these environmental projects and the impact these have made on Kilgraston.
i25 Awards filming
Having been shortlisted in the prestigious, UK-wide independent schools’ iExcellence competition, this week a film crew has spent the day at Kilgraston, creating a video for use at the awards ceremony at the Waldorf Hotel, London, on March 19.
Community passion, for all matters environmental, was conveyed by pupils, staff and Mrs MacGinty.
“We’re passionate about change, root and branch,” said the Head.
Detailing grass-roots changes, like shorter showers, wearing vintage fashion and using soap bars were all highlighted, in conjunction with larger issues like the avoidance of fast-fashion, mileage considerations and the importance of planting carbon- absorbing trees.
“We all have a responsibility,” said the Head
So true.
The video will be made available to the school in April.