A 21-year-old from Harpenden has been named one of the winners of the National Trust's Time & Space Award for young people.

Abi Way won the science award for her project to increase access to STEM for visually impaired and blind students.

Along with the three winners in other categories, Abi will now have a chance to develop her ideas at Woolsthorpe Manor in Lincolnshire - the childhood home of Sir Isaac Newton - and will be mentored by Dame Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, one of the competition judges.

Abi is currently doing a work placement with Airbus, and is studying product design engineering as an undergraduate at Queen's University, Belfast.

She said:  "I am really looking forward to working with Dame Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock and the National Trust to bring my idea to life

"I truly believe this will have a positive impact in helping more blind and VI children explore the wonders of STEM, and remove some of the barriers that I myself have faced, and these students continue to face, when it comes to accessing STEM subjects in the classroom."

This is the first time the National Trust has run the Time & Space Awards, which are inspired by the 'lockdown' experience of Sir Isaac Newton.

Newton returned home from university to flee the plague in 1665 and used his new time and space to pursue his interests - making huge strides in his work on calculus, optics, motion and gravity.

The award was launched after research revealed that half of today's young people say the experience of COVID-19 lockdowns made them more creative.

While many believe lockdown had a range of negative impacts, 44 per cent believe it had a positive impact on their hobbies and interests. 

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Science category mentor and space scientist Dame Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock said: "I’m passionate about science being for everyone and that’s the power in Abi’s idea.

"Working with Abi will feel especially personal, given my own father’s experience with visual impairment.

"I am excited to get started on our journey together and for the lives Abi will be able to affect positively as a result."