Pupil honoured with prestigious 'girl of the year' award after inventing device to help homeless

Britain's 'swollen population' is producing soaring homelessness figures |

GB NEWS

Aymon Bertah

By Aymon Bertah


Published: 18/08/2025

- 16:29

Updated: 18/08/2025

- 18:10

Rebecca Young designed the device when she was just 12-years-old

A Glasgow school student has been named in the Time magazine's girls of the year after she invented a device to help homeless people stay warm.

Rebecca Young designed a solar-powered blanket when she was just 12-years-old.


Engineering firm Thales turned the Kelvinside Academy student's invention into reality.

Miss Young is now one of 10 girls from across the globe, who were selected by Time, deemed to have inspired and helped communities.

The student told the BBC that she was shocked and honoured to be recognised.

Miss Young was also turned into a Lego mini-figure after the awards partnered with the Danish toy manufacturer.

She invented her incredible idea during the school's engineering club.

"Seeing all the homeless people, it made me want to help - it's a problem that should be fixed," Miss Young said.

Rebecca Young designed a solar-powered blanket when she was just 12-years-old

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Glasgow City Of Science And Innovation

"During the day, the heat from the sun can energise the solar panels and they go into a battery pack that can store the heat.

"When it's cold at night people can use the energy stored in the battery pack to sleep on."

Miss Young said Glasgow can be freezing at night and that homeless people "will have no power".

"So I thought the solar panel could heat it," she said.

The magazine cover featured on the Time's website

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TIME

The idea topped the UK Primary Engineer competition where more than 70,000 students entered with the aim of addressing a social cause.

Engineering company Thales transformed the pupil's idea into reality with 35 units given to Homeless Project Scotland which will be available in Glasgow.

It saw Rebecca to be included on the Time's list.

The magazine's Chief Executive Jessica Sibley said it highlights "those who are turning imagination into real-world impact".

Miss Young's mum Louise said she "couldn't be more proud" of her daughter.

"It's fantastic," she told the BBC.

"It's obviously all come from a drawing and going from that to it actually being made is amazing."

Miss Young will now be featured alongside the other nine winners on a digital cover of the Time's magazine - styled as mini-figures.

It is something she said was both "really cool and crazy".

She told other girls wanting to follow in her footsteps: "If you have an ideal like I did, then join clubs and talk to people about it, it helps".

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