‘Exploring Entrepreneurship’ was the latest multi-school event to be hosted by The Abbey, as part of our ARCH programme. We were delighted to bring together students from 14 schools across Reading and an array of professional guests, to inspire new entrepreneurial journeys.

The evening started with an Entrepreneurship Fair which showcased a number of student businesses alongside those of experienced entrepreneurs including Abbey Alumnae. The keynote talk was given by Sir John Madejski OBE and followed by breakout group conversations for students to ask questions of our entrepreneur guests.

Nishka (Lower VI) said the fair was a wonderful opportunity for students to seek advice on their social enterprise businesses, from setting a pricing structure to introducing technology. 

Meanwhile, Aarini (Lower VI) said the event really encouraged an entrepreneurship mindset – to be creative, stay optimistic and to see failures as a step to success.

We are so grateful to the many professional guests and organisations who supported this incredible evening including the Henley Business School, Peter Jones Foundation, Innovate UK, Ethical Reading, Samuel Family Foundation, Reading Entrepreneurial Society at the University of Reading and many more. 

Managing Director of the Peter Jones Foundation, Bill Muirhead, said it was wonderful to see so many schools collaborating together, “the sooner you start mixing with other people, the more you understand about communication and working in teams “.
To find out more about the ARCH programme and the Exploring Entrepreneurship event, go to arch.theabbey.co.uk