Apprentice star advises school pupils how to achieve goals

Saira Khan, the runner-up of the first series of the BBC’s The Apprentice, delivered an inspirational talk to pupils at Our Lady’s Abingdon School (OLA).
The whole Senior School at OLA was present to hear Saira speak about how to stay focused and realise your ambitions.
Saira Khan, who lives in North Oxford, currently co-presents ITV’s prime-time consumer show, the Martin Lewis Money Show. She also runs her own business, miamoo, which produces a range of natural skincare products.
Saira said: “This was a great opportunity to help inspire some of the entrepreneurs of the future. School is the time when people start building their aspirations for life, and I wanted to show all these pupils that, with hard work and determination, they can achieve everything they set out to.”
Before her talk, she spoke to a number of upper sixth pupils on a series of wide-ranging topics, from celebrity culture to university choices.
Abigail McLaven said of the experience: “I really enjoyed meeting Saira because she has such a different perspective on things.”
Jemma Convery and Rosie Abi Aoun added: “It was great because she didn’t make us feel like we had to be the best at everything, that working hard was the most important thing.”
OLA’s deputy head, Mr Neil Hathaway, helped organise the visit. He said: “We were delighted to welcome Saira Khan to OLA. Anyone familiar with her TV appearances will know how enthusiastic and inspiring she is, and I’m sure her talk will have a lasting impact on our pupils.”