A Burley-in-Wharfedale businesswoman has been named Yorkshire Woman of Achievement at an awards ceremony at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds.

Jackie Whitely, 54, beat competition from 31 short-listed nominees to receive this honour. The annual awards, in aid of Wheatfields Hospice, also saw Jackie win the Business Category.

With her husband Geoff, Jackie runs Strulch organic mulch – a product aimed at organic gardeners who wish to be as green as they can be in their garden. It is used by The Eden Project in Cornwall, at Kew and is endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society.

Strulch Limited, of Hill Crescent, makes the organic mulch from straw, which it says has many advantages over traditional garden mulches.

Jackie’s story is one of business success but also of personal triumph. Following the death of her son, she suffered severe depression and a total breakdown, but emerged stronger and has gone on to to create Strulch as a unique gardening product which is environmentally friendly.

Her original intention was to be a lawyer once her children were grown up, but her life took a very different turn.

She said: “The worse thing has already happened, so I am free to push the boundaries and see where I can get to.”

Recently the company was chosen as one of ten winners in a competition called Bucking the Trend.

The award was launched by Business Link Yorkshire to reward inspirational companies that highlight the region’s positive approach through the recession.

The prizes were six months of mentoring for the four gold winners and one-off mentoring sessions for the six silver runners-up from some of the region’s top names in business appointed by Rosie Winterton, Minister for Yorkshire and Humber.

They include Mark Andrews, chief executive of Ilkley-based engineering giant N G Bailey.

A Yorkshire Woman of Achievement award spokes-man said: “There are few people who stare the unthinkable in the face and have the courage and the determination to rebuild their lives.

“Jackie has done that. There are even fewer people who do so with dignity, tenacity, a good heart and with the ability to reach out to other people to help make their lives better.

“Nothing is wasted in Jackie Whitely’s world.

“Her passion for the environment, her skills, her need to reach out and make a difference is evident in her life.”