Heather Clatworthy, 28, was one of ten people to be shortlisted to take part in a 'Dragons Den' style event in London on Tuesday in the Geovation Awards Programme.

Competition organisers, who had sifted through more than 300 business ideas, had been impressed with Ms Clatworthy's venture, Mapping Britain on Horseback, which aims to collate all routes suitable for horse riders in the UK on a website for people to download for free.

Speaking after the presentation, Ms Clatworthy, who works in Stoneleigh and lives in Warwick, said: "It was intense but a highly worthwhile experience.

"We may not have won but it's absolutely fantastic that we made it to the final.

"Anything to promote the idea and make people aware of it is brilliant."

As senior executive for the rights of way department of charity the British Horse Society, Ms Clatworthy came up with the idea after seeing there was a public demand for equestrian routes.

She said: "We get 20 calls a day from people asking where they can ride their horses, but no-one can give them information apart from Ordnance Survey maps, which only give a third of the information out there.

"It's such an important cause and it appeals equally to walkers and cyclists. This affects many, many people.

"We have already recruited more than 500 volunteers in the space of a few months, which shows it has been well received. But we need lots more."

Volunteers are trained to go out on the ground to record routes on digital maps, which will then be checked for safety, before being added to the website.

The Geovation Awards Programme was opened in October last year to help individuals and businesses put forward their ideas for building maps.

Judges were looking for ideas which demonstrate innovative potential and how they use geography, with winners receiving a share of a £21,000 development fund.

Ms Clatworthy is hoping to have her website up and running in the next few weeks: http://emagine.org