The report of the Design Council in annoucing the Design Council Award Winners for 1965 was as follows;

`Yard arm' pick up stick
Designer D. A. Morton. Maker Mabar Manufacturing Co Ltd. A pick up stick for the disabled which weighs under 6 oz. Its mechanical parts are made in hardened spring steel and stainless steel. Price £1 12s 6d (plus packing and postage).

Two years ago, Derek Morton, with seven years' experience as an engineer in orthopaedic hospitals behind him, joined forces with two other engineers, Thomas Bates and John Rooker, to develop a pick-up stick for the disabled. Up to then, most British aids of this kind on the market consisted of wooden sticks with string pulleys. The aid designed by the three engineers, however, has all its working parts in steel, both to give it strength and avoid corrosion. Apart from the aluminium main shaft, the grippers, sheathed in rubber, below, are nickel plated steel, the wire and pull handle are in stainless steel, and the links are in hardened steel. There is also a small magnet at the top of the plastics handle, which can be used either to pick up small objects or to hang the stick from a metal surface.

The pick-up stick, which, though extremely light, is strong enough to lift a 4 lb weight, is a simple and ingenious device which has many applications. It permits the disabled to extend their reach by more than 2 ft and pick up things like pins and pencils, and is now being developed for use in shops, factories and garages. A version completely encased in rubber is also being developed for scientific and electrical purposes. Finally, its price has been kept within the reach of those living on a small pension.