Chesham Grammar Students Win National Challenge With Wickes
Five students from Chesham Grammar School were awarded the top prize in July when they won the Year 10 Wickes Challenge as part of the National Careers Challenge at London’s Barbican Theatre in front of over 900 people.
Winning Chesham Grammar School students with Careers Leader Kate Lovelace, Headteacher Annmarie McNaney and Store Manager of Wickes Chesham, Michael Wilson
The students Ana, Libby, Max, Ran and William developed a concept to create a well-being area at the school along with an app called ‘Wicki’ to help young people learn how to do DIY. This challenge was set by Wickes, the home improvement retailer.
The National Careers Challenge is organised annually at Chesham Grammar School for students in Years 7 and 10 by Careers Leader Kate Lovelace in partnership with The Inspirational Learning Group. The programme brings real, employer-led briefs into schools, fostering teamwork, confidence and problem-solving skills among 11 to 16-year-olds. The Year 7 student team also took part in the final with a superb presentation by Garv, Cosmo, Niall, Theo, Amalie and Angus.
This is the fourth time that Year 10 students from Chesham Grammar School have won the National Careers Challenge, in 2014, 2019, 2022, and now in 2025. It is the only school in the country to have had such huge success in the competition.
The Year 10 team’s winning proposal for the Wickes Challenge was to turn an unused space into a calm, inclusive area designed to promote wellbeing for students and the local community. The students selected Wickes products to create a warm, inviting atmosphere to make the space fresh and welcoming all year round. The second element of their project is an AI app called ‘Wicki’, which will tackle the problem of younger people lacking confidence and competence in DIY, turning their tech-skills into practical ones.
Michael Wilson, Store Manager of Wickes Chesham, visited the school to meet the students and congratulate them on behalf of Wickes. As the winning team, Chesham Grammar School will receive a product donation of £2,000 from the Wickes Community Programme to help bring their idea to life. As the winning team, Chesham Grammar School will receive a donation of £2,000 worth of products from Wickes to help bring their idea to life.
Delivered by The Inspirational Learning Group in partnership with NatWest Thrive, the Challenge has engaged more than 700,000 young people across the UK, Middle East and China since its launch in 2013.
Michael Wilson, Store Manager of Wickes Chesham said: “We're thrilled to donate products to help them bring this fantastic idea to life and support young people in developing both practical skills and a sense of community."
Hannah Randle Hockin, Community Engagement Manager, Wickes said: "We were incredibly impressed by the creativity and thoughtfulness behind Chesham Grammar School's winning idea. Their vision for a well-being space, combined with the innovative 'Wicki' app, truly stood out.”
Ben Dyer, Co-Founder of The Inspirational Learning Group, said “Students from Chesham Grammar School pitched their idea with distinction, making both their school and local community proud.”
Annmarie McNaney, Headteacher of Chesham Grammar School, said: “This has been a superb experience for the students who have developed in communication, teamwork and confidence, and we are very proud of their achievement.”
The Wickes Community Programme is open to all local community groups seeking help for improvement projects.
For more information, visit www.wickes.co.uk/communityprogramme
Notes to editor
The Wickes Community Programme has supported over 3000 charities and projects and is looking for more to support. They have a product donation fund of a quarter of a million pounds to support charities and community organisations by providing relevant products to help them with essential maintenance, renovation or to complete new projects. Wickes prides itself on being a part of its local communities and is always looking at ways to make a material difference in the community.
For more information contact the Wickes Community Programme press office:
E-mail: hannah.randlehockin@wickes.co.uk
or visit: Wickes Community Programme
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About Wickes
Wickes is a digitally-led, service-enabled home improvement retailer. With an extensive range of products and DIY brands, a Kitchen and bathroom design and installation service and a loyalty scheme for local trade, Wickes is the perfect partner to help with both small and large-scale projects. With 230 sites across the UK and an extended range online, it has everything customers need, whether an amateur DIY-er or trade professional.
Our Responsible Business Strategy, ‘Built to Last’, is focused on three pillars - People, Environment and Homes. We are building a business we are proud of, where all our colleagues can feel at home and are empowered to support their communities and customers; we’re supporting the fight against climate change and taking action to protect the natural environment; and we’re helping the nation make their homes more sustainable.
Our Wickes Community Programme comes under our People pillar and aims to support local community groups and charity organisations by providing relevant products to help them with essential maintenance, renovation or to complete new projects. Wickes prides itself on being a part of its local communities and is always looking at ways to make a material difference in the community.