House of Commons ‘Order’ for Reuben!

The “We Made It!” campaign, aimed at getting young people thinking about careers in manufacturing, invited 13 – 16 year olds throughout the UK to let their imagination run wild and design a brand new product, whether it be a gismo to help with homework or a piece of sports equipment to make PE more fun.

The competition saw designs and ideas from across the UK being judged by a panel of manufacturing experts.

Ballymena’s Reuben Harrison was selected by the expert judging panel as a national winner and received a special commendation at an awards ceremony at the Houses of Parliament this week.

Put forward to the national judges by Ian Paisley MP, Reuben designed a handheld device that assisted the blind with shopping and cooking by scanning barcodes and informing the person what the product was.

Reuben’s design was recognised by the judges for its originality and ability to hugely enhance society by helping those in need.

Commenting, Ian Paisley said: “It was fantastic to have both Reuben and his mum over to Parliament this week to recognise and celebrate his extraordinary success.

To come through such a strong pool of candidates and finish one of six national winners is a phenomenal achievement and one that was commended with a visit to the House of Commons.

Congratulations to Reuben and let’s hope he continues his excellent work moving forward.”