SRC Students Return for Year Two of Future Founders Programme

Some 2,500 young people across Northern Ireland took part in the pilot year of the Future Founders programme — and now Southern Regional College has begun its second run, with students in Newry and Armagh taking their first steps toward entrepreneurship.

The college confirmed that Sports and Business students at both campuses are enrolled, alongside Science and Hairdressing students in Armagh. The programme, designed to encourage young people to turn ideas into start-ups, has already delivered its opening move: a three-part workshop run by Young Enterprise NI that introduces participants to entrepreneurship.

What happens in the first stage?

Sam Walker of Young Enterprise said the first stage pushes students to think ahead. The focus is on what it takes to start a business, the skills required, and how a young person would actually go about building one in today's world.

It's deliberately early-stage work. The organisers frame the workshops as planting seeds rather than demanding finished business plans from day one.

When does the innovation camp happen?

In mid-November, the students move to an innovation camp. There they'll be challenged to think creatively and generate ideas of their own.

The programme's organisers make one point about this stage worth repeating: the simplest idea can often generate the most success. Students aren't being told to chase complexity — the opposite, in fact.

The final stage lands in January 2027. Students will meet local entrepreneurs and hear directly from people who have built businesses. The agenda covers their innovative ideas, how they created their companies, hints and tips on how to succeed — and, in the organisers' words, more importantly, what pitfalls to avoid.

What if the eureka moment hasn't come yet?

Organisers are explicit that not every student will leave with a business idea in hand. They stress that while students are challenged to innovate now, the eureka moment may not have happened for everyone — and there's always the potential for it to arrive at another life stage.

That framing sits at the heart of how SRC presents the programme. Lynne Ervine, Technology Enhanced Learning and Project Based Learning Manager at SRC, said: "The Future Founders programme gives students the opportunity to think differently about opportunities, innovation and their own potential. For some, it may spark the ambition to start a business; for others, it may inspire new ways of thinking that they take into their future careers."

Which skills does the college say transfer beyond business?

Ervine argued the programme's value isn't confined to future founders. In her words: "The programme demonstrates that entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial thinking are not confined to specific subject areas or career pathways. The skills students develop, including creativity, problem-solving, resilience and initiative, are valuable across all sectors and professions."

That breadth explains the subject mix. Sports, Business, Science and Hairdressing students are all in the same cohort, working through the same entrepreneurship curriculum regardless of their vocational track.

Who funds and delivers the programme?

Future Founders sits inside a wider Entrepreneurship Hub operating across Northern Ireland's Further Education colleges. The hub's stated role is helping learners connect with entrepreneurs, learn from real-world experiences and see how ideas develop into successful ventures.

The programme is facilitated by Go Succeed, a support service funded by the UK Government and delivered by Northern Ireland's eleven councils. Go Succeed works with entrepreneurs, new starts and existing businesses, offering advice and support at every stage of their growth journey — which means students on the programme are plugged into the same infrastructure that serves actual trading companies.

Ervine closed with the college's forward view: "We are excited to see the impact the programme continues to have on our students and the opportunities it creates for their futures."

With the innovation camp weeks away and the entrepreneur meet-ups set for January 2027, the second cohort now has a full calendar — and, if last year's 2,500-strong pilot is any guide, a proven format to build on.