Judges of a Bradford business ideas competition decided to add an extra prize to cope with the quality of entries.

As a result five people, rather than the original four, received £1,000 each for their bright ideas for setting up new businesses in the Bradford district.

The youngest competitor was 16-year-old Ruckaiya Karim, of Clayton, Bradford, and the oldest, 83-year-old Kenneth Petrie, of West Bowling, Bradford.

They were among the finalists in the contest by Bradford Kickstart, the organisation that has helped 500 business start-ups. The contest attracted more than 200 entries.

The judges chose the winners from 23 finalists. The winners were: l Simon Kenny, of Wyke, for his idea of a restaurant and catering service offering training and employment to offenders.

l Dan McTiernan, for his proposal to produce garden buildings using waste and recycled materials.

l Debbie Parker and Jenna Verity for ‘Sparkle,’ a make-over and photography experience designed to increase confidence in teenagers and young people.

l Toni Dominik, Julie Milburn, Kerrie Ormondroyd and Laura Spuden for their business idea ‘Woman at Work,’ a construction and renovation service provided entirely by women and which would encourage more women to learn skills traditionally associated with men.

l Steve Vink, of Riddlesden, for software which provides a new dimension to traditional ‘race nights,’ allowing organisations to raise money for charities.

Judges’ chairman Coun Adrian Naylor, Bradford Council’s executive member for regeneration, said: “The judges were spoiled for choice so we decided to award five prizes. The quality of entries demonstrated just how enterprising many local people are.”

All have been contacted by a Bradford Kickstart adviser offering guidance in developing their new business proposal. They were also invited to attend a free seminar entitled ‘Ideas into Action.’ They will also be offered advice and support from Kickstart business counsellors in Bradford and the Aire Valley.

In addition to Councillor Naylor, the judges were: Ned Basic, of the Dubrovnik Hotel, Manningham; Barbara Dinsdale, of Bradford-based health screening company Health Yourself; Shelley Tasker, a business counsellor with Manningham-based Digitalife; Sheikh Mani Waheed, managing director of Bradford property company Squarefoot Apartments, and Anthony Waddington, the Bradford business broker and manager of the mentoring service Be Involved.

The Bradford Kickstart advisory team can be contacted free on (0800) 953 9503.