PRIMARY school entrepreneurs sold all their stock in an impressive manner after winning over the staff of a green business park with their sales skills.

The Year five and six pupils at Red Hall Primary School in Darlington were at the town’s Lingfield Point and Student Loans Company last week to sell Christmas stockings, cards and reindeer dust they had made.

The pupils have been taking part in Virgin Money’s Make £5 Grow initiative, which aims to get children thinking about enterprise and business skills at a young age so they form part of their development.

And with well thought out seasonal items and pricing the pupils were able to sell all their stock in under two hours, despite making scores of the products.

Foundation for Jobs, the award winning partnership aimed at tackling youth unemployment, helps Virgin Money staff deliver the project in Darlington primary schools.

Under the scheme each pupil in a class is loaned £5. The pupils then pool their money to develop and make products they can sell, with any profits retained by the school after the loan is repaid to the bank.

Last week’s sale followed a profit making trip to Newcastle for one of the entrepreneurial school groups the previous week where they put on Sir Richard Branson life story puppet show in the city’s Grainger Market.

Red Hall pupil Merlin Towers said "I had so much fun. I want to start my own business now."

Class teacher Gillian Marshall: “The children had a wonderful time working on the Virgin Money Make £5 Grow programme and have learnt so much, from designing their product, coming up with a logo, creating and then selling their products. They were so excited to have sold out."

Estelle Vasey, Community Coordinator at Virgin Money said: “Enterprise education helps equip young people with the basic skills, understanding and attitude they will need in future life and in the world of business.”

A Foundation for Jobs spokesman said: “The pupils did a brilliant job throughout the project and to culminate with a sell-out of their products is immensely impressive.

“We would also like to sincerely thank Lingfield Point and The Student Loans Company for hosting the pupils so they could sell their products.”

Lingfield Point in Darlington has been developed sustainably by regenerating buildings and space at the former Patons and Baldwins wool factory site.

Foundation for Jobs is a national award winning initiative involving Darlington Borough Council, The Northern Echo and the Darlington Partnership of public and private sector organisations.

It has now worked with more than 3,600 young people aged between 10 and 24 since its launch in 2012.

For further details contact Foundation for Jobs co-ordinator Owen McAteer at owen.mcateer@darlington.gov.uk