A FINALIST from Alan Sugar's TV Show The Apprentice has gone into partnership with pupils from a York secondary school.

Claire Young, who reached the final of the hit TV show in 2008, was at Canon Lee School in Clifton working with the pupils on a long-term enterprise project, lending her expertise and enthusiasm to promote enterprise throughout the school.

Claire is pictured with the school's "Enterprise Ambassadors" who have all chosen to take business studies next year.

They will be working with local business contacts that Claire has set up and the programme will be ongoing with Claire coming back to Canon Lee several times a year, working with different students in school.

Deputy head Frances Johnston said Claire really inspired the students with key messages like ‘dont be a sheep!’: have the confidence to embrace who you are and don’t worry too much about what others think.

She said another of the businesswoman's tips for students was for the to be their own shop window: people form an impression of others in three seconds, your image includes how you are face to face, your online profile - such as Twitter and Facebook - and talking on the phone.

Ms Johnston said: "We are really excited as a school to have such a high profile and successful entrepreneur working with us on a long term project alongside our already established links with the North Yorkshire Business and Education Partnership NYBEP and we believe that the Enterprise agenda allows us to best support our students through school and into the world of work and training.

"The students are really engaged and delighted about their role and a number are already corresponding with Claire about some business ideas they have for school."