Insight – home use smear test kit, a project by industrial design engineer Maja Kecman, won the Big Idea Award for communication.

Insight is an affordable device for taking cervical smear tests. It enables women to take a smear of the cervix themselves in the privacy of their home and in their own time. It is also a fail-safe alternative to visiting a nurse or GP, therefore freeing NHS resources

Insight proposes a reliable and comfortable way to cancer prevention. It aims to encourage women to take responsibility for their own health, to be more aware of the issues surrounding cervical smear tests and to remove the negative stigmas, fear, and embarrassment associated with sexual health. One user said, “I get very nervous when the test is undertaken, so it is always more painful.”

Insight is patent pending and already attacting attention from companies and private investors.

WashingSacks is another project designed by Maja Kecman and this one should appeal to boys! This dissolving laundry bag is impregnated with washing liquid. Once filled up with laundry the bag can be placed straight into the washing machine.

By simplifying the transfer of laundry from the basket to the machine, much of the labour of the washing chore can be removed. The laundry bags are water soluble and biodegradable.