A WINCHESTER engineering firm has won a £5,000 national prize for its metal bolsters which can protect wooden fences from extreme weather.

SteadyPost’s FenceFins, created by Southampton inventor John Gibbs, are small metal attachments for fence posts, designed for quick installation to protect them from windy weather and climbing children.

The firm, based in St Johns Street, won the £5,000 Garden Industry Manufacturers’ Association Innovators’ Seed Corn Fund Award at a trade fair on Sunday (September 14).

Association director Vicky Nuttall said: “The company and its product really stood out. The FenceFin tackles a common problem head-on in the most innovative yet simple way.

“It will be no time at all before we see the product stocked in garden centres, sheds and multiple retailers across the country.”