A DISABLED teenager has taken part in an expedition after a garage owner rebuilt a special mountaineering wheelchair.

The chair was created 20 years ago to allow young people from the North-East a chance to take part in adventures, scaling Britain’s highest peaks, but it fell into disrepair and was put into storage.

When 14-year-old cerebral palsy sufferer Kimberley Welsh set her sights on completing her bronze Duke of Edinburgh qualification, Durham County Council youth worker Pat Hill turned to one of its original creators to restore it to its former glory.

Kimberley’s mother, Judith, has praised staff at the Cheesy Waffles youth project for helping her daughter achieve her dream.

Ms Welsh, from Stanley, said: “Kimberley absolutely loves going to Cheesy Waffles and I think it is a fantastic organisation, with fantastic people who are great with all the children.

“Going there allows her to be able to mix with other children and to lead as normal a life as possible.

“And when she wanted to do Duke of Edinburgh they were tremendous in having the wheelchair fixed.”

The wheelchair was first created two decades ago, when youth worker Dave Hill had the idea of climbing Ben Nevis and giving young people with a disability the chance to climb it too.

He designed an off-road wheelchair that could be pushed or lifted up the peak and enlisted Fred Henderson’s Garage in Durham City to build it.

The wheelchair was used for many years helping disabled young people take on their Duke of Edinburgh Award expeditions before falling into disrepair and being stored away.

With Kimberley wanting to take on the challenge Pat Hill called garage owner Fred Henderson and asked if he could take a look at the broken wheelchair and, if possible, reconstruct it.

He agreed and after three weeks it was ready to collect from his garage at Langley Moor.

Kimberley and her team successfully completed a two day, one night expedition using the wheelchair to conquer tracks, overgrown paths, riverside areas and woodland near to Waterhouses, between Lanchester and Crook.

Pat Hill said: “Such achievements are a great way of bringing young people together.”