A candidate hoping to convince Lord Alan Sugar to invest in her business is a former Lamplugh School pupil.

Rebecca Jeffery, who grew up in Asby, is one of the new cohort of 18 on the BBC One show The Apprentice.

The 31-year-old, who grew up in Asby, is the owner of a marketing and design business called Fi and Becs, which she runs with her sister Fi Woodhead in Greater Manchester.

Rebecca, who attended Keswick School, said she prides herself on being relentless and possessing an infectious enthusiasm, but admits that numbers and calculations are a weakness for her.

She said: "People often foolishly mistake my enthusiasm for silliness or positivity for naivety.

"I'm proof that you can get things done without whinging."

Rebecca left the area when she was 18 to go to Nottingham University where she graduated in 2006 with a degree in American and Canadian studies.

Her dad, Howard Bouch, who lives at Seaton, said that Rebecca often comes home to West Cumbria to visit family.

"She loves it up here," he said. "I'm so proud of her and think she's done fantastic getting on The Apprentice."

The primetime show returns next Thursday and will once again see Lord Sugar joined by advisors Baroness Karren Brady and Claude Littner.

The winner will secure a £250,000 business investment.

Also featuring in the show is sausage manufacturer, Oliver Nohl-Oser, who co-owns The Cumbrian Sausage, based in Penrith.

It produces its sausage at a unit on Maryport's Solway Industrial Estate.