An ambitious youngster from Dumbarton was given a taste of life in business by taking part in a Dragon’s Den-style challenge.

Aidan Lynn, a pupil at Our Lady and St Patrick’s High School, was among 22 pupils from across the west of Scotland taking part in an event to show them the practical skills needed for success in a competitive work environment.

And the challenge culminated with the young entrepreneurs bravely presenting their ideas to the “Dragons”.

The students on the week-long initiative spent a day each with STV, Glasgow Warriors, SSE and Network Rail.

Aidan was part of the winning team, whose stressLESS app was aimed at helping pupils cope with the pressures of exams and deadlines.

He said: “The day really helped develop my practical skills in a work environment.

“You can see what we need to learn and where we need to develop. The projects have been really interesting, and it’s been useful to see the weaknesses and strengths in our idea for the challenge.”

The day was organised by PwC and by the Social Mobility Business Partnership (SMBP), a charity dedicated to supporting students from low-income backgrounds.

Research has consistently shown that people from more affluent backgrounds take a disproportionate number of the best jobs and employers tend to disproportionately employ graduates who went to private schools and a small number of universities.

To combat this, PwC has doubled the number of students from disadvantaged backgrounds on its work experience programmes, and works with more than 250 social enterprises.

Kenny Wilson, Glasgow senior office partner at PwC, said: “Social mobility is about creating opportunities for everyone.

“Someone’s future should be determined by their talent and determination, but for too many people around Scotland that is unfortunately not the case.

“We’re committed to ensuring PwC is a place where everyone can succeed, and using our experience to improve opportunities more broadly.”

Twelve volunteers from the Glasgow office worked with the children, guiding them through a basic business project.