At 32 years of age Lucy Brown is not your typical Women's Institute member.

And now she is out to prove the traditional dusty image of jam and cake making is a thing of the past.

Mrs Brown, of Wickham Place, in Banbury — a member of Hook Norton WI — is one of 10 finalists battling it out to become the nationwide W-Icon.

She hopes her own modern outlook will win her favour with the celebrity panel of judges, which includes former pop pin-up Kim Wilde and Welsh popstar Cerys Matthews.

Mrs Brown, a consultant with Slimming World, said: "There has been quite a stigma attached to the WI but I think that even the older, more traditional members know that unless younger blood is brought in then it will die out.

"I was invited to a meeting by a lady who was anxious for some younger members to come in and help out.

"She had told me about all the lovely cakes that would be there, so I decided to cycle and burn a few calories at the same time.

"When I turned up at the meeting dressed head to toe in lycra I think they all wondered what they had let themselves in for!"

The winner of the new campaign will walk away with £10,000 to donate to a charity of their choice.

If she wins, Mrs Brown, the youngest member of the Hook Norton group, plans to plough all the money back into the village, by donating £2,000 each to its five charities.

The new WI has come under fire recently for some of their more controversial activities.

A TV documentary aired earlier this year followed a group of members as they campaigned to legalise brothels.

But Fay Mansell, the National Federation of Women's Institutes chairwoman, said the 100- year-old institute had long been a pioneering force in broaching taboo issues.

Ms Mansell added: "Some people see the WI as stuffy, but WI members have been leading the way for over 90 years on a range of campaigning issues such as Aids, climate change, and adult education."

Mrs Brown said she hoped the new campaign would remind people of this important work and also help introduce more light hearted issues.