Three Highland schools are taking their businesses to Bucharest in Romania this week after having come out top in a young enterprise competition.

Pupils from Inverness Royal Academy, Ardnamurchan High School in Lochaber and Plockton High School on the west coast will take their places in the Romanian capital between 29 March and 1 April alongside schools from across Europe.

The annual JA-YE European Student Trade Fair gives young people an opportunity to experience what it's like to sell their products and services to the public. The event aims to boost the teams' business results and reinforces the relationship between member nations.

The three Highland teams landed the opportunity following their success at a trade fair last December that was organised by 'Young Enterprise' - the UK's leading business and enterprise education charity.

Linda Thomas, the chair of Young Enterprise Scotland in Highland said: "The young people have been building up to this since last September when they developed their plans and ideas for what they were proposing to sell. The trade fair in Inverness saw the three teams from Inverness, Ardnamurchan and Plockton come out on top, earning them the right to travel to Bucharest."

The team from Ardnamurchan High School developed a multi lingual children's book in english, french, german and gaelic. The book incorporates a CD that users can listen to whilst following the text in the book, making it an effective learning tool for pre-school and primary children.

Inverness Royal Academy pupils developed a cook book DVD that involved filming local chefs at work who explain the recipes they are cooking. This allows users to watch the DVD in their own kitchens and follow the chefs as they go along.

The Plockton High School team developed a number of multi-functional metal stands. They can be used in the garden as plant pot stands or support for garden candles or in the home as a convenient stand for items like hair dryers.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise has sponsored the trip to Bucharest. Senior development manager, Brian Weaver said: "Developing an enterprise culture in the Highlands and Islands starts with young people and these three teams prove how innovative and entrepreneurial they are. Projects like Young Enterprise Scotland help promote self employment as a possible future career option as well as hopefully adding value to the economy in the longer term."

The success of the three business groups is due in no small measure to local business advisors who give their time freely to help the groups through the business start up process. If you would like further information about becoming a Young Enterprise advisor or board member contact Linda Thomas on 01349 877258.