By Online Team

27^th Feb 2012:

A young Ugandan university student is among six winners of a Barclays bank business award.  George Mpanga’s winning idea is to create a series of poetry workshops to empower underprivileged young people with the analytical skills they need to transcend social barriers.

Last week, Barclays and UK broadcaster Channel 4 announced the winners of ‘The Stake’, an online competition which invited 16 to 21-year-olds to submit ideas for activities and businesses that would make a positive impact on the community.

More than 10,000 young people voted for their favourite ideas. In order to be able to vote, they had to complete Barclays Money Skills challenges and improve their money management skills.  The six winners were chosen from more than 1,000 entries.  The winners will each receive up to £20,000 – out of a £100,000 prize fund – to turn their ideas into reality over three months.

To implement their projects, the winners will also receive support from Livity, a company specialising in communicating with young people, as well as top business leaders from Barclays.

The other five winners are:

• Imran Mistry, from Stanmore, Middlesex: Imran submitted an idea for a youth club to offer young people a chance to take part in activities including arts and crafts, table tennis, and developmental workshops to address issues such as conflict resolution and drugs awareness
• Robson Dodd, from Ashton-under-Lyne, Tameside: Robson hopes to combine his two loves of music and coffee into a volunteer-run, community-based coffee shop with online services and arts facilities
• Casey Mckinney, from County Antrim, Northern Ireland: Casey wants to build an animal sanctuary that will restore the connection between nature and children
• Ollie Swayne, from Lewes, Sussex: Ollie wants to run a mobile skateboarding facility, complete with ramps and rails, where young people can learn, exercise and socialise in a secure area
• Emily Strutt, from Ipswich, Suffolk: Emily wants to set up a social hub in her school, enabling young people to take part in group activities and learn new skills in an appropriate environment.

Antony Jenkins, Chief Executive of Barclays Retail and Business Banking, said: “…The Stake has been a fantastic competition creating exciting new ideas for enterprise, boosting young people’s financial awareness and finding the business leaders of tomorrow.”

He congratulated the six winners who, he said, “…generated strong support for their proposals and really impressed the judges.”  He said the prize could be life changing for the winners and pledged Barclay’s continued support for the young entrepreneurs.  END.  Please login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories and anytime mid-week for our news updates.