THE winners of an annual competition to encourage young people to learn more about the world of business were announced this week.

Hilary Armstrong, Labour MP for north-west Durham, presented prizes at the ceremony, organised by Wear Valley Forum for Business and held at Auckland Castle, home of the Bishop of Durham.

Schools in Wear Valley were invited to enter their year ten students into the competition, and entries were received from teams and individuals who came up with ideas for a new business.

All entries included a business plan to demonstrate the commercial viability of the idea, and the youngsters had to pitch a presentation to a panel of experts, similar to television show The Dragon's Den.

Graham Jonsson, economic development officer for Wear Valley District Council, said: "The quality of the presentations and business plans was excellent, far beyond what we expected.

"The judges were very impressed by the standard of presentations and the planning that had gone into it. They had really got a grip on it and went for it."

The competition was designed to teach the youngsters more about the competitive world of business, allow them to meet successful local entrepreneurs and improve presentation and communication skills.

The winning team was the one that presented the best business idea in the most persuasive way, and the annual trophy was presented to the first-placed team. All participants received a certificate of achievement.

The winners were -

First prize of £1,000, to be used for developing school and business links, to the school which provided the winning team or individual for the most commercially viable or profitable business idea, and £50 gift vouchers for the members of the winning team.

Winner: Wolsingham School and Community College. Team: Melissa Emerson, Kathleen Emerson and Laura Tidyman. Teacher: Peter Dunn

Second prize £500, to be used for developing school and business links, to the school which provides the winning team or individual for the most innovative or novel business idea, and £25 gift vouchers for members of the winning team.

Winner: St John's RCVA Comprehensive School. Team: Sarah Tarn, Francesca Rossi, Anthony Dolan, Adam Longley, Luke Duncanson. Teacher: Louise Small.