A NORTH Yorkshire woman has pitched her business idea in a competition to win support from Richard Branson.

Jane Botham, who runs the Whitby-based Queenie, Godfrey and Company, has designed a range of adaptive clothing suitable for children with disabilities such as Rett Syndrome.

The attractive range of organic clothing - which aim to help make dressing easier and can accommodate back braces and discreet access to feeding tubes - was inspired by a friend's daughter Emlyn, nine, who has Rett Syndrome.

Jane said: "It is a complicated genetic beast which can rob girls of their walking, their talking and quite often their swallow but not their sense of humour or their lust for life.

"Queenie, Godfrey and Company was inspired by Rett and is hoping to make life a little bit easier (and a little bit more stylish) one garment at a time."

Jane has pitched the idea in the Pitch to Rich competition run by Virgin, which will see the ten best pitches win a share of more than £1,000,000 in prizes.

The project began in earnest two years ago and currently has a range of ten garments for each age group.

"I did a lot of research into clothing because of Emlyn's issue," she said, "I needed to find clothes that accommodated very stiff arms and with extra width in the hips.

"I have designed the clothes so they are really easy to put on."

She said Emlyn now wears the clothes in the range.

To vote in support of Jane's business pitch, go to http://www.virginmediabusiness.co.uk/pitch-to-rich/new-things/queenie-godfrey-and-company/