A YOUTHABILITY volunteer and former service user is taking on the Coniston to Barrow to raise vital funds for the charity.

It will be the eighth time that Dawn Huitson, 29 from Barrow, has taken on the course, with her team of walkers nicknaming her ‘the veteran’.

“It’s a thing we do every year for the youth club,” said Dawn. “I absolutely love it.

“Just knowing that it’s for such a good cause, it’s worth all of the pain at the end."

Dawn, who Has Asperger’s Syndrome, joined YouthAbility Youth Services 18 years ago as a service user and returned at the age of 18 as a volunteer so that she could ‘give back’.

Being part of YouthAbility gave Dawn the confidence to go to University to study Special Educational Needs (SEN).

She then went on to volunteer at a SEN camp in Wisconsin, America, last year.

She said: “The youth club has been part of my life for so long.

“I have been a member since I was 11 or 12, and then I volunteered for them since I was 18 because I wanted to give back.

“YouthAbility targets young people from seven upwards with disabilities, but we welcome people without disabilities as well. We are very inclusive.”

The Coniston to Barrow and Keswick to Barrow walks are taking place this Saturday (May 13).

You can find out more about YouthAbility Youth Services by searching on Facebook.

To make a donation towards Dawn’s cause, you can visit her fundraising page at: https://keswick2barrow.co.uk/donate/106852?cid2=106852