Second year students from Macclesfield College’s BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Business programme took part in a ‘Dragons’ Den’ activity where they presented business ideas to a panel of industry experts.

Using skills they had learned in starting a small business, market research and business accounting units on the course, eight teams of students came up with a variety of entrepreneurial ideas.

These included a Michelin star restaurant and cocktail bar, a car finance business for young people, a waffle, milkshake and doughnut shop, a cinema complex, a small animals pet hotel, a health and beauty salon, wedding planner and musical festival package company.

The Dragons included Robin Tait, relationship manager at NatWest Bank in Macclesfield, along with business experts Chantelle Dewberry and Michelle Crawford from the college.

Ian Shenton, manager of business banking at Barclays, also helped the students prepare background information on their various businesses.

Each team had a total of 20 minutes to sell their business idea, followed by some tough questioning from the Dragons.

Chantelle Dewberry, head of vocational studies at the college, praised all the teams for their hard work.

She said: “The presentations were very professional and it was very difficult to judge a winner. Eventually the Dragons agreed that the ‘Wine and Dine’ team had a slight edge on the others as their finances were the most realistic and their teamwork was particularly impressive.”

Tutors Carole Uske and Alex Stevens were proud of all students who had worked enthusiastically this term on their creative business ideas and were pleased to see the progress made by students in their presentation skills since joining the course in September 2014.

They said many of the learners wish to progress on to apprenticeship programmes and the outstanding communication skills they developed during the Dragon’s Den experience will be particularly valuable to any future employer.