MP joins Alnwick pupils for PIE challenge

The BIG PIE (Primary Inspiration through Enterprise) Friday Challenge is being delivered for free to schools within three stages.

The first being two timed activities, one engineering and another coding-based to schools across the North East that have signed up.

Five schools from each area that are the quickest at completing the tasks will go through to the second stage where they will each undertake a full day of enterprise.

The students will plan, create and sell a product with support from local businesses, complete a formal qualification and then be judged on the profit they make.

The challenge will ultimately culminate in an awards ceremony in Newcastle in June.

Mrs Trevelyan, who joined pupils at St Paul’s RC Middle School in Alnwick, said: “This is a fantastic scheme and I was honoured to be able to see what the pupils have been getting up to.

“The scheme has done a great job of engaging them, at such a young age, in basic skills that we will need more of in the future.

“It is vital we encourage enterprise in our young people, and this is a great way to get them inspired.

“I am especially pleased to see our armed forces getting involved in the scheme and it was a pleasure to be joined at St Paul’s by Lt Colonel Sue Haughie TD, Deputy Commandant of Northumbria Army Cadet Force.”