A TEAM from Jedburgh Grammar Campus emerged triumphant – and £199k in ‘profit’ – after a new ‘Apprentice-style’ interactive schools simulation competition.

Young people from across the south of Scotland have received hands-on experience of running a successful business through the South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE) supported event.

The online contest saw six secondary schools take part in heats, with a team from Jedburgh Grammar Campus coming out on top in the grand final against a team from Dumfries Academy.

Other schools competing in the contest were Lockerbie Academy and Dalbeattie High in Dumfries & Galloway, and Eyemouth High and Earlston High from the Borders.

Each school team was given the task of running a virtual business and asked to make various decisions through an online learning training programme run by Scottish company GingrTech.

These decisions aimed to ensure the company continued trading and ultimately made a profit over a virtual 12 month period.

After each 26-minute round – which equated to 26 weeks of virtual trading – teams were given time to reflect and learn from past mistakes to improve their performance in future rounds.

Students performed various roles including being a CEO, and working in sales, delivery, finance and marketing teams.

At the end of the grand final which saw both schools trade for a virtual six month period, Jedburgh Grammar Campus ended with an overall net profit of almost £199,000, with Dumfries Academy close behind with £160,000 profit.

The competition was co-ordinated by business simulation games experts GingrTech, alongside South of Scotland Enterprise and Developing the Young Workforce teams in both Dumfries & Galloway and the Scottish Borders.

Nicola Shaw, programme officer with Developing Young Workforce Scottish Borders, said: “We were delighted to have young people take part in this unique opportunity.

“It not only raised awareness of the industry sector, but there was also an increase in senior students’ confidence and self-belief on what they can achieve, and their broader ambitions.”