On 23 June 2022, the first ever Cambridgeshire County Day celebrated the very best of Cambridgeshire and inspired thousands of students.
Form the Future organised the attendance of almost 2,000 students to the event with thousands more attending in total. The day provided a wonderful opportunity for the county’s diverse and vibrant community to come together and be inspired by the best of Cambridgeshire, as local business, charities, clubs, voluntary groups and public sector organisations from every corner of the county showcased what they do.
A highlight of the day was watching three teams of students from Linton Village College, Bassingbourn Village College and Melbourn Village College presenting business pitches that they created at their schools Enterprise Days. The pitches took place in the AstraZeneca marquee with the guidance from Alex Hughes and Shifties. The Shifties community have been fantastic champions of our Enterprise Day events – and it was great to see students practicing their pitches at the start of the day and getting feedback and support from the Shifties team.
We also facilitated the Cambridge LaunchPad partner scavenger hunt. Students were tasked with seeking out three Cambridge LaunchPad partners at the event and getting an official Cambridge LaunchPad stamp from each, as well as finding out more about the partner and what they do. Students really embraced the challenge and were spotted taking advantage of the activities that businesses, such as Marshall, Illumina and Hill, were offering on their stands.
Form the Future’s Programme Coordinator, Jennifer Wilby, said:
“What a great day! It was fantastic to see so many people representing schools, local businesses and the general public enjoying the sunshine and celebrating Cambridgeshire – and a bonus to have royal visitors too!
Young people from schools all over the county came along, some to perform on the main stage and others to visit the employer tents. There were fun quiz competitions too – students collected stamps showing they had chatted with local employers and found out more about the organisations. We hope this sparked their interest in possible future careers.
The Astra Zeneca tent was buzzing with students who had won their in-school Form the Future Enterprise Day competitions and were able to present their entrepreneurial business ideas to industry professionals. Well done to the team from Bassingbourn Village College who won overall. Their prize is to spend a day at Deloitte to learn even more about how ideas can become reality. Thanks to Alex Hughes at Shifities and Ignite for encouraging these young people.”
We really hope that Cambridgeshire County Day becomes an annual event, and if so, we can’t wait for next year!
