Improving life chances for young people on the Isle of Wight
Ed-WISE is a charitable community benefits society, led by a team of professionals from across education and business sectors. Our purpose is to support our Island communities in improving the life chances of our young people.
Teaching young people business skills
Ed-WISE supports students from all backgrounds in improving their business-related skillsets.
Bridging the gap between education and business
We highlight emerging and diverse career opportunities that students can aspire towards.
Helping to develop entrepreneurial spirit
We encourage students to keep exploring opportunities and believe in themselves on their journey.
Ed-WISE is a charitable community benefits society, led by a team of professionals from across education and business sectors. Our purpose is to support our Island communities in improving the life chances of our young people.
Ed-WISE is a charitable community benefits society, led by a team of professionals from across education and business sectors. Our purpose is to support our Island communities in improving the life chances of our young people. To achieve this, we work with local business, schools and colleges.
We have been chosen to support some high-profile government-led initiatives, thanks to our track record of supporting students in their development and realising opportunities.
We deliver the Young Enterprise Company Programme on the Isle of Wight, with students from across many secondary schools and colleges across the Island taking part in an academic-year long competition to launch and run a genuine business. Each team is supported by a volunteer business advisor, who guides the team on their journey.
Making a practical difference
- Empowering Youth
- Bridging Learning Gaps
- Building Confidence and Purpose
- Creating Opportunities
Our mission focuses on equipping young people with essential tools for life and career success.
We bridge the gap between academic knowledge and practical real-world skills for youth development.
We help youth discover their strengths, build confidence, and develop strong sense of purpose.
Here one student explains how the Company Programme has given him the confidence to progress in life.
Katie David's Story
Paws of Wisdom established in the company program to offer fun toys for pets that created elements of challenge and learning, to keep pets stimulated.
“Taking part in the Young Enterprise Programme has helped me to grow in confidence, public speaking always made me feel so nervous, because I had never really done it before. Now I look forward to doing so. The opportunity to meet new people and improve my communication skills has given me a really strong base for going forward. This year I am providing peer support to the teams from IOW College, which gives me further experience and allows me to draw on my skills I have learnt through my journey with Paws of Wisdom.”
Lead partner
Ed-WISE is supported by Island estate agency Hose Rhodes Dickson, who have funded key aspects of the Company Programme.
Our relationship with Ed-WISE has grown deeper each year, as we have all striven to build and steadily develop a programme that helps to inspire and equip island students around the world of business. As an Island company, we have championed the Company Programme for many years and recruited staff through meeting them on the Programme.”
An innovative careers website for students of all ages
Ed-WISE is currently working on a new careers website. Through video, business people will give an insight to students about what their industry is really like – showing the good and the not-so-good, allowing students to make a clearer choice about future careers.
Our success with Young Enterprise
We continue to work with Island schools to help their students succeed in the Young Enterprise programme. Below are some of the recent accomplishments.
Dragons Den Delight
Several student teams pitched their great ideas to Island business owners, who were very impressed!
Area Final Winners
The “Swish” team from Ryde Academy qualified for the IOW and Hampshire area finals.
Trade Fair Experience
Students were delighted to participate in a 'Trade Fair Experience' where they made and presented their products.
What we have achieved so far
- Run a successful 'Company Support Programme' for Young Enterprise participants - despite the challenges caused by the Coronavirus.
- A record 9 teams took part in our Company Support Programme, with help from the same number of business advisors, plus other business sector specialists getting involved.
- Our Dragons' Den event in February was a major success and acted as a springboard for many of the Young Enterprise teams.
- We've supported the students in improving their pitching and presentation skills, which was backed-up by the positive feedback from local business owners during the Dragons' Den event.
- Two teams progressed to the Hampshire & IOW final, with one of those teams winning!
Download Our End of Academic Year Report
Ed-WISE is proudly working with
Island schools and colleges
And Island businesses
Feedback from schools & students
