FREETHINKING furniture designers from Great Missenden have been working with experts from the Chiltern Enterprise Gateway to develop their design and business skills.

Year ten pupils from the Misbourne School have been competing in a design project called Freethink Furniture, where their ideas for an outdoor piece of furniture and a business plan proposing how they would sell the product were put under the scrutiny of experts in the industry.

The students were given advice from local business people and entrepreneurs on how to invent a product, write business plans, financing, marketing and presentations.

Susan Kurr, director of Enterprise Gateway, is thrilled with the way the project has developed.

She said: "The students have had a great time working on these projects and they really enjoyed the chance to be creative and think about how business works in the real world.

"We are also really impressed with the high standard of entries we received."

The five finalist teams were due to present their projects to a judging panel at a special event at the Ercol building in Princes Risborough on Thursday.