Four secondary school pupils proved they had safe hands with money by claiming top prize in a virtual investment competition.

The teenagers, from Trinity School, Shirley Park, were named monthly regional winners of the IFS Student Investor Challenge.

The competition, run by IFS School of Finance, tasks teams of students aged 14 to 19 with using £100,000 of virtual money to buy and sell shares in FTSE 100 companies.

Trinity's team, called Stochastic, increased the value of their share portfolio by nearly 40 per cent in November, meaning they will be entered into a draw for a place in the regional final in March next year.

If triumphant in March, they will enter into a national final to battle it out for an all-expenses-paid educational trip to New York and £2,000 for their school.

Rod McKee, vice principal of the IFS, said: "This competition gives students the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of making investment decisions, which will benefit them throughout their lives when making financial choices.

"It also introduces them to core concepts such as risk, reward and diversification.

"Getting this far in the competition is a real achievement and many congratulations go to the team from Trinity School.”