Four high profile businessmen today came to St Peter’s School in York to talk to Lower Sixth pupils from several schools about careers in business.
Their visit makes up the School’s first conference of TEAM (The European-Atlantic Movement); an independent education foundation aimed at promoting an understanding and discussion of world affairs among young people.
The conference was open to pupils from St Peter’s, as well as visiting pupils from Giggleswick School and Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School, Blackburn.
Ben Fuller, event organiser and Head of Politics at St Peter’s, said: “We are pleased to bring a conference of national calibre to our students in York.
“It’s great for Lower Sixth students to hear from successful business people as they start to plan their own careers. The tone was very optimistic – despite the current economic climate the country finds itself in.”
The keynote speaker was John Cridland, Director-General of the CBI. Mr Cridland is the key spokesman for business in the media, on public platforms and with government. He leads the CBI – the voice of business – in the UK, and represents it internationally.
Mr Cridland said:
“I greatly enjoyed the TEAM conference at St Peter’s. It was a really interesting event, and I hope we have reassured lots of young people that they have bright futures ahead of them – especially with careers in British business.”
The other speakers included:
Paul Grimwood, Chairman & Chief Executive of Nestle UK & Ireland. Paul was appointed CEO in January 2009 and one year later also took on the role of Chairman.
Richard France, Managing Director of Oakgate Property. The Oakgate Group is a major property and development company in the North of England. Recently, they have been involved in a major new development at Monk’s Cross, providing a stadium for York FC and York City Knights and a new retail space to include a John Lewis and Marks and Spencer.
Jim Riley, Co-founder of Tutor2U.net, one of the world’s most popular educational websites. It serves over 35 million visitors each year and this month celebrates its 10th birthday.
The event has been organised by TEAM and staff at St Peter’s, with sponsorship by the Financial Times and The Economist.
– Attached photo showing (l-r): Summer Taylor, Mr Cridland, Hamish Lynde and Felicity Halstead.