Business Start Up competition

15th October 2019

Lairg and District Learning Centre are organising their Business Start Up competition, with a £1000 prize fund, to help encourage and support business start up and development in the area. Alongside the prize fund, all entrants will receive one to one business support, to help to get their businesses off the ground.

We will accept entries from all sectors with special categories for social enterprise and youth enterprise.
The competition is open to all Sutherland residents aged 16 years and over and is currently open for entries, the closing date is the 15th of November. the competition is open to all business that have been started within the last two years or to pre-trading start ups.

Successful applicants will be asked to come to Lairg on the 29th of November to present their ideas to our panel of judges.

This will be followed by an evening awards ceremony, where we are privileged to have James Dunbar as our guest speaker.

James Dunbar, who is originally from Lairg, is the Founding Chief Executive of New Start Highland, a leading social enterprise based in the Highlands of Scotland. He is a Director of Social Enterprise Scotland, and the Third Sector Interface. He participates in Scottish Government's Scotland Can Do Forum and sits on the Highlands & Islands Territorial Committee. He has twice been a winner of the Institute of Directors "Director of the year" award and has received the EY Entrepreneur of the Year award. He also led New Start Highland to win the SCDI Business Excellence award for environmental sustainability and Highland Business Awards Best Social Enterprise. James was awarded an OBE for services to the development of the economy and the community in the Highlands and Islands in the 2016 New Year's Honours.