The winner of the EDP Business Award for Breaking Boundaries is already making a positive contribution to schools and pupils in the county and further afield.

Developing Experts is a teaching resource for primary school teachers, enabling them to top up their knowledge in areas outside their field of expertise with help from universities and industry.

It provides a library on online lessons, with expert interviews, quizzes, hands-on activities for pupils and take-home resources for parents and children.

Founded by former teacher Sarah Mintey, the Future50 firm is supported by a team of science experts in fields from chemistry to horticulture and climatology and has partnerships with Weatherquest and Nottingham Trent University.

The judges said the Norwich-based company had 'broken geographical boundaries and used technology, innovation and ambition to disrupt the educational market. Already making an impact on schools, pupils and parents alike the business aims to continue breaking boundaries while maintaining equal access to learning for all, as a core value'.

Ms Mintey said her company wanted to 'change education' and already had the backing of global companies like Shell, Astrazeneca and Airbus.

'I think we have a system and a solution that has the capacity to do that. We have support from the largest companies in the world wanting to give us total access to their teams, so we have got ourselves well positioned in that network to take off.'

She added: 'It feels like all the hard work has paid off and we are looking to move from strength to strength.'

The Breaking Boundaries award, sponsored by Lovewell Blake, seeks to celebrate pioneering firms who have embraced new technologies, innovations and subsequent growth opportunities.