Playing to win: Pupils at Great Marlow School taking part in Playing for Profit. The school came third AXA Sun Life bows out of popular schools' competition THE excitement of this year's finals of the education/business competition Playing for Profit was tinged with sadness.

It was the last time AXA Sun Life, which has been involved in Playing for Profit since it started about ten years ago, will host a final.

The firm closes its Hazlemere offices later this year.

The six teams at last Tuesday's final had the task of devising a promotional package to present to the management of a new adventure theme park in Holland.

The Year 10 pupils from Chesham Park Community College, Beaconsfield High, Great Marlow, Misbourne, Sir William Borlase's Grammar and Wycombe High schools had an hour to design a logo for a promotional T-shirt, create a TV advert lasting 30 seconds and work out a profit package.

Pat Bramley, an education writer with the Bucks Free Press, was one of the three competition judges.

She said: "It was great fun and there was obvious value, both from an educational and future career point of view.

"I marvelled at the ingenuity and professionalism of the teams who completed the tests in such a short time."

The team from Sir William Borlase's Grammar School, in Marlow, took the first prize of £200 and individual prizes of £20.

Runner-up was Wycombe High, with Great Marlow School in third place.

Playing for Profit is an annual event organised by the Education Business Partnership supported by AXA Sun Life, Nycomed Amersham, Dun & Bradstreet, British Alcan, Cavewood Transport, Montgomery Watson and the Bucks Free Press.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.