Nine-year-old James Buckley faced the dragons from the hit TV series, including Duncan Ballantyne, James Caan and Peter Jones. The budding business mogul succeeded where many adults fail winning the dragons' approval for his Look For Loneliness campaign.

The youngster of Minister Close, Greetland, was taking part in the BBC's very first children's version of the hit series.

He pitched his idea, based around bullying and loneliness in primary schools and got the backing of businessman James Caan.

The package, Look For Loneliness, is designed for primary schools using stickers, stories and signs.

It includes three playground displays and 16 stories all written and designed by James.

So far he has sold the package to his own school which will be sending it out to neigbouring schools. A website has also been launched for the product.

In his pitch, which was filmed at Pinewood Studios, Slough, James said: "Can I say my story ends on a happy note? The package was put into my wonderful school this year and has worked very well."

His mum, Vanessa Buckley, said it was wonderful.

She said: "James is a unique boy and is very level headed, he has taken everything in his stride and is adult about everything."

James, who attends The Gleddings School, Savile Park, Halifax, and lives with his parents, Matthew and Vanessa, and eight-year-old sister, Lucy, appeared in the Children in Need special last night.

James, who has a passion for ballet, took to the stage with stars such as Westlife and Kylie, but his mum said he was never starstruck.

The youngster inherited his entrepreneurial skills from his great-granddad, Roy Taylor, who used to own Halifax Sheet Metal and Ventilation and Halifax Fan Company.

It is not the first time James has been a media star. In March he and his family were pictured to promote the launch of the new-look Courier when it moved to compact format.