Law firm Bolt Burdon Kemp has launched its inaugural student design competition, ‘Getting Back on Track’.
The idea of this competition is to design a product aimed at improving the lives of people with a spinal cord injury – it can be something simple, like creating an easy way to change a lightbulb, or something more complex, like a dishwasher adapted for people with a spinal cord injury to use with ease.
The firm, which acts for people with a spinal cord injury and, with their specialist team, helps them get their lives back on track, is looking for a design which is new, unique and practical, and which really considers their needs.
The competition launched in December 2017 and closes on 21 May 2018. The winning entry will receive a £3,000 prize, along with £2,000 for their university and the chance to take a week placement at charity Cerebra’s research centre. This competition is open to individual students and teams of up to four – undergraduates or postgraduates – from any higher education institution, college or university in the United Kingdom.
Commenting on the launch of this competition, Raquel Siganporia, head of the spinal injury team at Bolt Burdon Kemp, said: “In my role I see lots of people who have suffered life-changing spinal cord injuries – be it from an accident or as a result of clinical negligence. In these instances my client needs to adjust to their injury, their new mobility needs and get back to their ‘new normal’ as soon as possible.
“We’ve launched this competition to invite design students to come up with a new product which can help a person with a spinal cord injury day-to- day – all too often, it’s a simple, everyday task which can be an issue for somebody with a spinal cord injury.
“To help the students understand the specific challenges, we’ve produced a video which shows four people with different spinal cord injuries discussing their day-to-day issues and the variety of needs people with a spinal cord injury have – it’s not the same for everyone. I’m very excited to see the designs the students come up with.”
The entries will be judged by a panel, including a variety of experts specialised in the field of spinal cord injury and product design, and a representative from charity Cerebra.
For the full brief and terms & conditions, visit: https://www.boltburdonkemp.co.uk/getting-back-track-competition/
Image: Raquel Siganporia, head of the spinal injury team at Bolt Burdon Kemp
