STUDENTS are helping a firm of opticians to get a glimpse of the future.

Seventeen second-year industrial design students were asked to design a pair of spectacles as part of their course work.

The students were asked to design spectacles for five categories - children, male, female, unisex and prescription sunglasses.

Yesterday, Specsavers, Middlesbrough, joint partners in the exercise with the University of Teesside, presented Nick Palfreyman with the winner's prize of £350 worth of craft and design vouchers.

Middlesbrough store manager David Stockton said: "We saw this as an ideal way to teach students about the planning and design that goes into a pair of glasses, and to make them aware that this is a field they could go into once they have finished their courses.

"We are also keen to get more home-grown talent in the industry, so teaming up with the University of Teesside seemed the obvious thing to do.

"We chose Andrew as his designs fulfilled the initial brief, in that they were innovative, cutting edge and technically different.

'We are looking into the possibility of having the designs manufactured and putting them on show in store, or possibly even up for sale."

Tim Platt, Enterprise Co-ordinator of the University's School of Arts and Media, said: "We asked that the students put together a professional design proposal as though this was a genuine exercise, and they rose to the challenge, creating some great proposals and designs."