TWO women from Hyndburn have been given the highest award in Girlguiding.

Janine McToal, 26, from Oswaldtwistle and Katey Anderson, 19, from Rishton, from the Accrington Division have received The Queen’s Guide Award.

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They have developed their skills while contributing to Guiding and their communities.

The award is based on the concepts of personal challenge and participation and is split into five sections: service in guiding, outdoor challenge, personal skill development for a minimum of 60 hours over 12 months, community action and a residential experience.

Janine, a Rainbow leader, encourages the girls and supports them in reaching their potential.

She decided to head to London to speak on a panel at the ‘Engaging Youth’ conference discussing ‘How women are perceived in the media’.

The event gave her the opportunity to network with business people, CEO’s and co-founders of big businesses and allowed her to talk about something she is really passionate about.

She said: “Now, I don’t feel like a hypocrite when I tell girls to grasp every opportunity.

“Working on my Queens Guide Award has opened a world of opportunities and experiences.

"This has allowed me to shout out about what I believe in, grow in confidence and has pushed me out of my comfort zone "This was all achievable with a great support network and friends made along the way. I would encourage everyone to get involved.”

Katey said that the biggest challenge she undertook was a sponsored ‘Wii Walk’ for Rainbows, Brownies and Guides based from Rishton Cricket Club.

All participants who completed the walk were awarded a specially-commissioned badge.

The event raised £1500 which was presented to the spinal clinic at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

The money was used to purchase Wii consoles to be used as part of patient rehabilitation on the Major Trauma Ward.

Katey has completed her award as she has experienced significant health challenges.

For Katey this made the Community Action section of the award and arranging the sponsored walk particularly challenging.

Katey said: “The flexibility of the Queen’s Guide award provides a challenge for everyone, which is important so you can gain a valuable award and a sense of achievement.

"It has taught me to be resilient and even more determined to overcome whatever challenges I face.”