Two young innovators from Sunderland have been named winners of the 2026 Harrison Challenge after showcasing a new mental health mobile application at the Foundation of Light‘s headquarters, the Beacon of Light.
Kenneth Morris and Taylan Turkmen-McKenna were awarded the top prize on 21 May 2026 for their project, which focuses on helping users build positive habits, stay physically active, and track their emotional wellbeing. The pair impressed a panel of judges, including Harrison Foundation trustee Daniel Harrison MBE, by presenting a working prototype of their application and accompanying website.
The annual competition is part of the charity’s Study Programme, which aims to help young people gain practical career skills. Participants are tasked with identifying pieces of technology they use daily and proposing ideas for how to improve them. This process is designed to build essential skills such as public speaking, presenting, innovation, and critical thinking.
Neil Jones, Youth Skills Coordinator at the Foundation of Light, praised the standard of entries in this year’s event. He described it as the strongest competition to date, noting that the panel was impressed by the high quality of ideas and the confidence shown by the students during their presentations.
The initiative is supported by a long-term partnership between the Foundation of Light and the Harrison Centre for Social Mobility. Since 2017, the Harrison Foundation has invested more than £600,000 through the Centre into employability programmes that provide training in areas such as maths, English, IT, and financial literacy. Based at the Beacon of Light facility in Sunderland, the Centre works specifically to support young people who have faced challenges in mainstream education.
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