Jennifer Sey (left) helps Helen Weir get to grips with orienteering

Gareth shows Nick Gaskell, Ann Whitaker and Chloe Martindale the basics of canoeing

VOLUNTEERING has been a real adventure for two young people working with Bolton Youth Service.

Gareth Davies, 16, from Horwich, and Jennifer Sey, 25, from Rossendale, are Bolton's first recipients of the Toucan Millennium Volunteer Award of Excellence.

Millennium Volunteers is a countrywide initiative offering young people the chance to give something back to the community. People between the ages of 16 and 24 are asked to dedicate a maximum of 200 hours to a project of their choice.

Both Jennifer and Gareth, who volunteered with Adventure Unlimited -- the outdoor education facet of Bolton Youth Service, will receive their awards in Manchester from a yet-to-be named celebrity.

Gareth, whose volunteering role was as a trainee instructor for outdoor activities, is to become a full-time instructor and chairman of the Adventure Club -- an adventure youth club held on Sundays.

And Jennifer, whose full-time job is the executive officer of the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme in the North-west, has qualified as a basic expedition leader award holder, since her volunteer work with Adventure Unlimited.