Young entrepreneurs in Newmarket have been given a £1,000 boost following a Dragon’s Den style competition hosted by the Newmarket July Festival.
Fifteeen students from Newmarket College made presentations to Cllr Robin Millar and Mark Edmondson, festival committee chairman.
Some of the successful participants were Jess Walton, a flutist with Suffolk Youth Orchestra who hopes to become a professional musician, Jack Lockwood who wants to work in motorsport engineering and a basketball player who aspires to represent team GB at the Olympics, Karlynn Edgeller.
Money has also been given to support Jess Anderson, Cheyenne Wilson, Jenny Offley, Ellen Nice and Jess Keen who are going to Kenya as part of the 2012 Newmarket College expedition and Joanna Turvey in an international Guide project.
Bob Cadwalladr Newmarket College principal and part of the Dragons panel said: “We were very pleased and impressed with the range and quality of the pitches to support the service, ambitions and passions of the students of Newmarket College.
“These were all wonderful young people and we were only sad that we were unable to support everyone.”
Mr Edmondson added: “This has been a great example of the festival funds really being put to good use by helping the talented young people in Newmarket to further their dreams and ambitions and in that way satisfies a key aim of the festival. My only regret is that we couldn’t do more.”