GOVERNMENT initiative Young Enterprise is urging all Worcestershire businesses to "adopt a school" and work with its pupils.

For £550 a businesses can adopt a school and sponsor a Young Enterprise company.

To lessen the financial load, smaller companies can consider partnering with a similarly placed one.

Funding for Young Enter-prise Company and Team programmes has traditionally been awarded directly to the organisation's national head office for dispersal throughout its 12 regions, including the West Midlands.

However, due to a change in the Learning and Skills Council policy, the decision was made to allocate the funds to all secondary schools and colleges in the form of a specific enterprise entitlement.

The decision was made in July, when schools were closing for the summer holidays.

As a result, much of the funding remained undetected and it was then allocated to other financial priorities.

As a registered charity Young Enterprise has always been reliant on the business community for volunteers to enable students to experience the benefits of mentorship.

But now it is faced with a further dilemma because it needs financial support to enable local schools to participate in the programmes.

Some of the most successful companies and public sector organisations in south Worcestershire have, for years, been endorsing the benefits of working together with Young Enterprise.

Worcester Bosch, Rabjohns, QinetiQ, HM Revenue & Customs and Worcestershire County Council are among those who are the scheme's most avid supporters.

Kevin Lee, chairman of Young Enterprise South Worcestershire, said: "It's vital we maintain the spirit of Young Enterprise in South Worcestershire. Many schools were bitterly disappointed that they were unable to run Young Enterprise this year, particularly the students with disabilities and special educational needs that participate in our Team Programme.

"We feel that every single student in south Worcester-shire should have access to enterprise education, and I'm afraid with the lack of funding it's likely to become an activity for the privileged few.

"This will also devalue the competition element, which is great fun and also gives young achievers something to work towards."