Micro Tyco is a month long event that allows participants to practice and develop their entrepreneurial skills. Teams from schools, universities or businesses have one month to turn their £1 loan into as much money as possible. All profits raised goes to a company known as “WildHearts”. WildHearts is a charity that is committed to launching companies that fight poverty in all forms. The amount of money raised is invested towards poorer citizens in the developing world, assisting them in their work until they are financially stable. WildHearts puts this as:
“Participants become entrepreneurs to fund entrepreneurs”
2015 was the sixth year that St. Andrews and St. Brides has participated in the annual fundraising event. Last year the school managed to raise an astonishing £3,603. This ensured that they were the top school in the whole of the UK for the second year in a row.
Last week Heather, a representative from the WildHearts charity, paid a visit to St Andrews and St Brides to congratulate the participants. She discussed how amazed she was at how well the school as a whole had done and how she hopes for St Andrews and St Brides to become a model school for others to be inspired by. She also hopes for our continued efforts throughout the years to come.
After speaking to Jai Lawson, a skilled mentor of one of the teams who contributed to this great cause, the pros of engaging in the event are evident:
“It was really interesting to see the wide range of ideas that the kids could come up with… It was fun to listen to their views since it makes you think of the challenge from a different perspective”
Although, monitoring a number of young amateur entrepreneurs isn’t always the most desirable job.
“Very little people actually turned up at meetings. Sometimes no one would even go up… There were a few sections (of the programme) that were particularly frustrating”
Yet, undoubtedly the greatest part of Micro Tyco is that whatever amount of money that one manages to raise, it will be donated to those who vitally need it to survive
Katie Hunter and Mandy Wan
