A FAMILY who set up their own business has been awarded the ‘Fampreneur of the Month’ accolade.

E2 Young Engineers Harrow was set up two years ago by founder Smita Shah, 53, from Hatch End, with the help of her son Nikhit, 24, and daughter Rhea, 17.

Although a dyslexia teacher by trade, Ms Shah had been helping her son - who has learning difficulties – find a job after he left college and was left unemployed.

By chance, she stumbled upon the Young Engineers franchise which takes science and maths learning to children using Lego® and K’nex® and decided to set up her own family business – with the hope of passing it on to her son.

Now, two years down the line, the Shah family have been chosen as the ‘fampreneur of the month’ by company Business for Sale for all their hard work and commitment to making their franchise work as a family.

Ms Shah said: “It’s great to get this recognition as a business. As a family it’s brought us income, set us new challenges and opened new horizons.

“In a short time frame we’ve helped develop the skills and confidence of hundreds of Middlesex’s school children.”

“We’re now at a crucial threshold as demand is beyond our capacity to supply so maybe there’s another entrepreneurial family nearby who’d be interested in joining forces with us so we can grow the business together.”

With the support from three instructors and a handful of voluntary helpers, the current team visit schools and host birthday parties, summer camps and workshops for children in Harrow to teach them a variety of skills, including the basics of physics and engineering.

From creating mechanical drums to constructing Lego cranes, pupils are able to play while also learning how to make things work and the history behind it.

The programme also teaches social skills and helps to improve self-confidence and self-esteem with all the attendees.

The award is the last to be made in 2015, which was declared The Year of the Fampreneur in the UK following extensive research which discovered a growing trend for family members to set up new businesses together.

Rufus Bazley, Marketing Director at BusinessesForSale.com says, “We chose the Shahs as the final winners of 2015 because they built a successful fampreneur business which acknowledged and harnessed all their skills, including Nikhit’s who is a crucial member of the team.”

“And their success is such that they’re employing staff, pulling other family members in to help and now are in need of a new business partner to take the business forward.”