A Black Isle school has won a youth enterprise championship for its work developing and producing a range of products to help people living with dementia.
Fortrose Academy beat fifteen other Scottish schools to win the Festival of Youth Championship 2019 for their entrepreneurial Venture project.
Venture’s Past Times conversation board game helps players of different generations to spark memories, learn from each other and chat.
The team also developed a ‘dementia mitt’ – with different textures and colours – designed to help people living with dementia and a ‘Knit your own Mitt Kit.’
Venture not only won Can Do Scotland Company of the Year Award, they took four other awards.
These were the SIS Social Impact Award; SQA Link Teacher of the Year Award won by Margaret Rhynas from Fortrose Academy; Accenture Digital Presence Award; and Fin Davidson, one of the pupils on the Venture team won the City of Glasgow College Journey Award.
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Venture was also praised for the partnerships it had formed within the local community and beyond to ensure the products can reach those who could benefit from them.
Venture will now go to London on Monday June 17 to compete in the UK final.
Three other Highlands and islands schools were finalists, including Kirkwall Grammar for its standing stone wooden clocks made from recycled pallet wood; Brae High School Shetland for it aluminium water bottles aimed at reducing plastic use and the Nicholson Institute, Stornoway for its bespoke handmade candles in tea cups.
Area heats took place throughout the year, with finalists attending Edinburgh Corn Exchange for a day to show case their wares and present them to judges.
