Computing students recognised for their innovation, creativity and positive social impact

20 October 2026

Computing students at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) turned their innovation and creativity into award-winning success at an awards presentation evening held recently.

UWTSD Computing students and winners of Changemakers competition

The Changemakers Innovation Competition 2026 is a second year module, Changemakers: Creativity & Value Creation, which is part of all computing programmes at UWTSD. The module aims to encourages students to develop innovative ideas and practical solutions that create a Positive Social Impact (PSI), while also developing the technical, professional and ethical skills that they will need throughout their future careers.

Organised by senior lecturer James Williams and sponsored by Engineers and Scientists in Business Fellowship (ESBF) and Shipmax, the evening provided an opportunity to celebrate the creativity, innovation and achievements of students and also recognise the invaluable contribution of industry partners who not only judged the competition but also gave their time as mentors to the students.

The students were divided into groups for the competition. The winning project in Group 1 was submitted by Tonio George for CyberGuard Pro: Network Security Tool, a network security and analysis tool which is capable of directly identifying vulnerabilities and providing evidence of security risks. Tonio, from Swansea, picked up the top prize of £750 in the Changemakers Networking & Cybersecurity Innovation category for a project that demonstrated strong technical understanding, effective problem solving and excellent technical delivery. His entry also won the Shipmax Professional Innovation Award for its stakeholder engagement, user-centred design, technical implementation and realistic commercial potential, together with Tonio’s ability to reflect professionally on the challenges and lessons encountered during development.

The winning project in Group 2 was developed by Edward Lloyd who received the Changemakers Innovation Award and £750 for his NHS Future Workforce Simulator. Edward, from Llandovery, developed a workforce forecasting solution designed to support longer-term NHS workforce planning. According to the judges, the project demonstrated an outstanding end-to-end development lifecycle, progressing from a clearly defined organisational challenge through to a technically sophisticated solution supported by quantitative validation and analytical thinking. It also showed the highest level of technical depth and academic rigour within the group.

James Williams said: “Our students demonstrate the remarkable potential of human creativity and technology to make a positive contribution to society, and this year’s projects were another fantastic example of that potential come to life.

“Selecting winners from such a strong range of projects is never easy, and the innovation, creativity and technical ability demonstrated across both cohorts gives us plenty to be excited about for their futures.”

Olivia Collins won the Changemakers Development Innovation Award and £500 and was placed second in Group 1 for her project Wear the Weather / WearWise AI. The Swansea student was credited for the most complete and well-engineered system within the group.
The Changemakers Social Impact Innovation Award and £250 went to Daniel Leone, from Llanelli, who was placed third in Group 1 for his project The Human Firewall: An Educational Cybersecurity Themed Game which uses gamification to address the increasingly important real-world challenge of cybersecurity awareness. Daniel’s project was recognised for its excellent structure, analysis and consideration of social impact.
Molly Thomas, from Hengoed, won the Changemakers Innovation Award and £500 and was second in Group 2 forher project Intelligent Knowledge Base Helpdesk Agent for IT Service Desk Support. Molly addressed a highly relevant workplace challenge through an innovative application of Artificial Intelligence. According to the judging panel her solution demonstrated a mature and realistic approach to enterprise AI, alongside careful consideration of governance, support processes and longer-term deployment. It was recognised as the group’s strongest business-ready AI solution.
Tia Willock’s project, Trackogram: A Mobile Health and Wellbeing Application picked up £250 and third place for her project which combined physical health tracking with mental wellbeing support within a single platform. Tia, from Swansea, was recognised for the strongest mobile application prototype within the group.

James Williams continued: “Well done to all of our students who took part in the competition. Technology continues to evolve at an incredible pace, but ultimately it is human creativity, imagination and our ability to use technology positively that will determine the difference it makes in the world. Our students have already demonstrated their potential to be part of that future.”

An important part of the Changemakers module is giving students opportunities to engage directly with successful and professional people working within industry, who give their time, professional experience, knowledge and advice and who were part of the judging panel which included:

Adam Curtis, CEO of Hoowla
Edd Turtle, Senior Software Developer at Hoowla
David Jones, Principal Consultant at Fujitsu
Geraint Williams, Director of Mission Control at Fujitsu
Phil Rees, CEO of ShipMax Ltd
Mathew Marl, Executive Head of IT Systems at UWTSD

During the evening, a special mention for their significant contribution was given to David Jones and Geraint Williams from Fujitsu who supported students through guest lectures and provided support for their projects, and Phil Rees CEO of ShipMax Ltd, who also provided guest lectures, work experience and internship opportunities as well as mentoring and funding the student prizes.

James concluded: “A big thank you to our industry partners and sponsors for their support which helps us encourage our students to develop the enterprise, business and leadership skills that can help them take innovative ideas beyond university, into wider society and to become the leaders of tomorrow and make a positive difference in the world”.

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