We Have Some Cracking Winners
What a grand day out!
Yesterday saw the annual Cracking Ideas Award Ceremony take place at Liverpool’s Spaceport and as with previous years the standard of Cracking Ideas entries has meant it was a tough call when it came to choosing winners!
4 to 16 year olds throughout the UK were tasked with creating a Wallace & Gromit style sporty innovation whilst incorporating information about patents, trade marks, copyright and design. We received over 4000 Cracking Ideas in total from contraptions to help you score goals (useful in the Euros!) to brand conscious surf-board designs; and buoyancy aids to help nervous swimmers jingles and tunes to promote team spirit.
Each entry portrayed the creativity and ingenuity characteristic of the Cracking Ideas’s resourceful young innovators.
In the end, as with all competitions, there have to be winners and we think that the top three selected by Aardman’s Creative Director Merlin Crossingham really are worthy of their winning ‘podium finish’ status!
In the 4 – 7 age group Jessica Williamson came first with her Wallace & Gromit-like spring loaded football boots. Inspired by a visit to the World of Cracking Ideas exhibition in Newcastle Jessica developed her idea in order to help her school soccer team score more goals.
In the 8 – 11 age group BritneyAnn’s danced her way to victory with her sport-tastic stylish shoes ‘Mini Flatleys’ which come with the luck of the Irish in the form of a free promotional charm bracelet and the promise of comfort and high performance on the dance floor.
In the 12 – 16 age group Elliot Comnene came top with his ‘Footie Chair Spring-O-Matic’ which was designed with wheelchair users goal scoring in mind. In true Wallace & Gromit style gadgets and contraptions with multiple levers and buttons allow shooting, tackling and dribbling skills to be improved. Elliot’s clear style and development of a brand using a well thought out logo for his Cracking Idea proved to be a real winner with the Aardman judges.
The National winners were presented with their prize of a bespoke Cracking Ideas trophy made by the Aardman model makers by Baroness Wilcox, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Business, Innovation and Skills amongst much celebratory congratulations from an audience comprising special guests including children’s TV presenter Gareth Jones and Cracking Ideas very own ambassadors Wallace & Gromit.
Regional finalists came from Scotland, England, Northern Ireland and Wales with teachers and family to receive their prizes of special animation software, board games, Nick Park signed books and certificates. A great time was had by all! Details of all their innovative and creative Cracking Ideas can be found on the Cracking Ideas website The new Cracking Ideas competition based on a super-sonic galactic space theme is available now so why not get in touch with your inner-innovator and take part … it could be you who is being crowned Cracking Ideas winner this time next year!