FORMER bus driver Brian Foote has won a £45,000 grant - to develop a bright idea he invented in his garden shed!

Brian was off sick from work with a hand problem two years ago, when he decided to try and improve on the splints given to him by doctors.

And now his invention is undergoing trials by Blackburn Royal Infirmary on other patients.

Brian, 56, from Blackburn, has formed his own firm to develop and market the product and has beaten off competition from dozens of North West firms to win a £45,000 grant to carry out further work on the product.

He suffered an injury while working on an angle grinder almost 30 years ago. It had caused him discomfort over the years, but an unconnected condition then affected his other hand in a similar way and meant he had to take time off working as a bus driver for Stagecoach.

"I basically had a problem where the fingers were 'clawing' and it was very painful to open them out and to grip," explained Brian. He was given splints by BRI but they immobilised the rest of his arm and meant he couldn't work.

As a confirmed 'tinkerer' in his shed, Brian went away to try and design a device that would enable fingers to be stretched and clenched easily. The result is a plastic glove with spring mechanisms.

"It worked for me and now my hand is fine. If the problem does re-occur I can just put the device back on again." Now it is being used by the orthopaedic department at BRI and Brian is hoping to get it into other hospitals across the country.

He and former Stagecoach colleague John Hornsby, have formed Dynamic Healthcare, based at Eanam Wharf, to further develop and market the product.

The £45,000 grant from the DTI is under the SMART scheme, which helps small firms turn bright ideas into commercially viable products.

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