Young inventor of accessible device pitches idea to Paralympian Ellie Challis

A 10-year-old schoolgirl who designed a wearable device to help “all of the disabled people in the world” make payments hopes her invention could one day be used at the Paralympic Games.

The school student from York, known only as Beatrice, won a competition held by Visa and was given the company’s first role of junior chief innovation officer after she designed a wearable headset with an in-built hearing aid, a screen showing sign language and a voiceover.

The schoolgirl pitched her design at Visa’s office in Paddington, London, in front of the company’s chief executive Charlotte Hogg, and Team GB Paralympic swimmer Ellie Challis, which prompted Beatrice to also hand write a letter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) about her invention.

“The IOC and the IPC, they’re both really big committees, and they barely ever reply to letters. So it was really cool to know that they read my letter and liked my invention,” Beatrice told the PA news agency.

She hopes her invention can be used widely at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the future, as well as “used for different music concerts like Taylor Swift and maybe for football games”.

“I hope that it helps them to create loads of new ideas to help improve the experience for fans watching the Olympics and Paralympics,” she said.

Beatrice, 10, created a wearable accessible headset to help people with visual and hearing impairments (Visa)

Beatrice, one of 30 children who took part in Visa’s contest to design an intuitive way to make payments, described her surprise at winning: “It’s really nice to know that they liked my invention out of all of the other ones.

“I was thinking about all of the disabled people in the world, and I thought about how they might not be able to see or hear as well as me, and so I thought it would be cool to create a device to help them make the experience best for them and make it more accessible for all those disabled people.

“When you turn (the device) on, there’s a little robot that asks you how to play a sport, and you get to choose what sport you want to play.

“So for example, if it was football and if you scored a goal, then that would be your payment, so you have to win the sport to be able to go through to the games.”

She hopes her invention will inspire others to “never give up” on their own creations.

“To everybody in the world who wants to make inventions and things, then I tell them to keep going, and never give up, and always feel free to share their ideas, because you never know you could end up being famous for your invention one day,” she said.

Beatrice, 10, spent a day at Visa’s head offices in Paddington to pitch her invention design (Visa)

Beatrice’s mother, Georgina – who does not wish to use her surname, went with her daughter to Visa’s offices and said Beatrice “was brilliant” at answering all of the panellist’s questions and “had an answer for everything”.

“It’s been really fun and nice to think that children’s ideas can be useful and can be developed into something really important in the future,” the governance adviser in the education sector told PA.

British Paralympian Challis, who worked with Beatrice on her invention, said her “creativity and passion for inclusivity is truly inspiring”.

Meanwhile, Mehret Habteab, head of product and solutions at Visa Europe, said: “Beatrice’s letter to the IOC and IPC is a testament to Generation Alpha’s new way of thinking.

“Their expectations are set to revolutionise economies, so it’s vital for any company – from businesses to sporting bodies – to develop innovations which cater for these needs.

“One way we’re doing this for the Paris 2024 Games is through technologies like Visa Go, a new app for Visa cardholders visiting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, which enables them to gain access to unique experiences with curated local businesses, follow Team Visa athletes, and engage in interactive add-ons.”