We announce our 2026 Helen Barrett Bright Idea Award winners

Over the next few months, we’ll be releasing full stories behind each of our winners’ businesses, but small snippets of some of the winners’ stories are below.

Sara: Peak and Bloom

“Being able to make choices in your life to achieve or do something you want to do is what a life unlimited looks like to me”

I think CF has also given me a resilient mindset, it’s taught me so much about my ability to adapt and overcome. It has also given me a love for keeping active, especially outdoors, with a passion for the physical and mental benefits of hiking - a way to care for both my physical and mental wellbeing. Suddenly I thought it would be amazing to do walk-and-talk-style coaching outdoors and building a community of likeminded people who find wellness in the outdoors.

Sammy: The Smooth Edit Beauty

“I hope young people with CF read this and know they can do it too”

I always enjoyed being creative at school, so went to college and did courses in hairdressing, beauty therapy and media make-up. I supported myself with part-time jobs, and after college, didn’t want to push my health to the limit, so found it best to stay in part time employment.

One thing I have always found really tough is getting support from employers, and sometimes I’ve had negative experiences where people haven’t understood CF. I definitely feel like I missed out on work opportunities in the past, and ultimately this drove me to become self-employed.

Louise: Eco Hub

“I try not to let CF impact my life too much, and I don’t let it define me.”

Me and my best friend Charlotte were both looking for new avenues for employment, and have always been quite creative people. We went to a place near to where I live and they had lots of bits and pieces you can use for craft or education, that would have otherwise been thrown away. We thought we could offer something similar but expand on it, offering workshops, selling environmentally-friendly products and supporting local artists. That’s when Eco Hub was born.

Libby: Lib’s Cards

“It would be really nice not to have to worry about money and having another job all the time.”

I have been running my business for nearly six years. I was furloughed and shielding and looking for something to do. It’s funny, because I wasn’t really interested in art at school – in fact, my teacher sat me out of his way at school because he didn’t want to see my work!

I started painting flowers on cards for friends, and then they wanted more and I started getting requests, and it grew from there.

Helen: Blooming Felt Flowers

“I’m not doing it to make a load of money, I just want to break even and enjoy myself while I’m doing it.”

All the time I’ve been in hospitals, I’ve enjoyed crafts like colouring in, cross stitch, knitting – all sorts. I saw a book for making felt flowers. I didn’t want to sit about and mope, I thought I should do something to keep my brain active.

I think they look good, but I would because I’ve made them!

Abi: Fairytales and Tiaras

“Honestly, there is so much I want to do! I have so many ideas, I can’t wait to start!”

It’s something I could look forward to and it was a really rewarding job. When I am dressed as a princess, I feel like I didn’t have CF at all. Despite that, I did an event where I was actually on IVs. It was 4 hours long, at Christmas, and I’d just come out of hospital. I got the costume fitted to cover my port, and I realised no one would ever know I had CF. I thought it was such an achievement. I realised it’s want I wanted to do.

Dan: Amplifis 

“I work with people from all walks of life, with degrees from a huge range of subjects. Lots of us have taken varied paths to get where we are, but eventually we got to the same outcome.”

Being self-employed is something that has always interested me. I went along to a workshop at the university around research consultancy and it sounded like a really good fit, in terms of combining this interest, the skills I’ve developed during my career, and also my lived experience. 

I spoke to someone I know with a complementary skillset to me, and we had the idea for doing freelance consultancy in the area of health research. The idea for the application came from that.