I've come across some great pieces of research discussing corporate social responsibility (CSR) in a range of business sizes and types. Businesses' commitment to their sustainability and CSR is has been important for a long time in the corporate world but now it seems more...

07 October, 2014
With the increasing emphasis on enterprise education, particularly at a primary level, some teachers’ ability to deliver this content might be called into question. Some argue that entrepreneurship cannot be taught by someone who has no experience of running a business, but is that unfair?Some teachers have never left the education system. The route through school, university, and a PGCE is familiar, with many teachers embarking on their careers in their early 20s. Furthermore, people in mainstream education grow up around teachers and understand the role of a teacher perhaps better than any other profession.
18 June, 2014

This week the Tykes team received the three beautiful Island Friends books courtesy of We Are Lucky. Having supported the Island Friends project through their successful Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, our backer's reward finally arrived at Clever Tykes HQ. We're not going to hide the fact that we love...

04 December, 2013

Hang on just a minute, a perm?!No, not a perm; a P.E.R.M - a positive entrepreneurial role model.We thought we'd do some research and see if Google could find us any positive entrepreneurial role models. Not sure what we're on about? Read our page on...

10 October, 2013

This week we received a copy of Enterprising Child to get our teeth into. Written by mother and businesswoman, Lorraine Allman, the book is a resource for parents looking to nurture their children's creativity and enterprising spirit. Naturally, this caught our eye and we thought...

19 September, 2013
What do you think about the concept of teaching entrepreneurship? Most people tend to fall into one of two categories. Some say "you're born with 'it'" and that "you cannot teach 'it'" - 'it' being this kind of entrepreneurial X-factor.  But there are also plenty of people who oppose this view and believe that entrepreneurship can be 'taught'. In fact, I increasingly come across individuals and schemes that claim to be able to 'teach' entrepreneurship. This concept utterly intrigues me. Why? Because we begin to touch on some fundamental issues in our society and how people learn things.
13 August, 2013

One of the most viewed TED Talks is Sir Ken Robinson's How Schools Kill Creativity. He performed it back in 2006 and it is well worth a watch if you're not one of the 40 million who already have. It is a brilliant piece which...

05 August, 2013
I'd like to start by drawing your attention to an article I came across on LinkedIn which James Caan posted recently on entrepreneurship. The post outlines some of the barriers facing people who are not "born with the ability to be an entrepreneur" when starting their own business and offers some wise words. I agree that most people prefer a secure job offering a regular salary and that these people struggle to find the confidence to take the leap over to the 'other side'. Taken from top of the article:
01 August, 2013

  • I am a huge advocate of the entrepreneurial messages and characteristics that you are driving. I think it is a fantastic idea to instil the idea of entrepreneurship into children from a young age. This is a great way to open children up to the idea of not always following conventional paths and giving them the belief and confidence from an early age to pursue their own creative business ideas and ventures.

    James Caan, CBE – entrepreneur and former Dragon

  • The Clever Tykes series are such a wonderful way to introduce ‘enterprise’ to children from a young age – I can’t recommend them highly enough, and strongly urge parents to read along with their child as there is no doubt the stories will stimulate lots of questions and interest!

    Lorraine Allman, Author and Founder of Enterprising Child

  • I found Walk-it Willow easy to read and full of lovely messages that children can take from it. It touched on taking responsibility, problem solving, admitting mistakes and also the work it takes to run a small business. Willow is entertaining but very human. A lovely story.

    Naomi Richards, The Kids Coach, parent and life coach for children