Nottingham student designs magnetic walking stick

As part of his research, Mr Guyett met with people with a range of disabilities to gain a greater understanding of their personal experiences.

He found walking sticks did not “integrate very well” into people’s lives and could become a “hinderance” at times, saying the sticks often fell over when being leant against a counter or were difficult to use on buses.

He said: “I wanted to create something to show how we can design away many of the common problems that are faced by people who have to rely on a walking stick.”

The student created a clip that hooks onto the top of a pair of trousers and another magnet that attaches to a small steel plate and can go under clothing such as dresses.

Named Ida – after the mountain on which magnets were discovered in Greek mythology – the walking stick can attach to both clothing magnets or be secured against any other metal surface and easily pulled away.