A WIDNES Girlguiding volunteer has taken her Guide unit to Lisbon for the trip of a lifetime.

Rachel Fielding, 46, grew up in Widnes and has been involved with Girlguiding for most of her life – starting as a Brownie at seven before moving onto Guides.

After leaving to travel the world, Rachel decided to become a volunteer at her childhood Guide unit in Widnes.

“I volunteer where I grew up, which is in the middle of a council estate, so I know what life is like,” said Rachel.

“For me, it’s all about giving the girls the opportunities that I didn’t have as a Guide.”

Rachel became passionate about finding ways to give the girls in the Widnes unit as many experiences as possible – particularly ones that might not be accessible to them outside of Guides.

“I didn’t get those opportunities growing up,” she said.

“I had fabulous leaders – we did camps, did residentials, we went on trips – but going abroad always seemed to be what other girls in more affluent areas did.”

Determined to give the girls in her Guiding unit every opportunity she could, Rachel completed the qualifications she needed to take the group overseas.

“I thought, there should be no barriers to them doing this,” said Rachel.

“I could picture them on the trip and thought they would just get so much from this.”

With the help of her other unit leaders, Rachel organised a trip to Lisbon for the Widnes Girlguiding unit as part of the ‘Adventures In…’ event – one of Girlguiding Northwest England’s international offers.

The event saw nearly 200 members of Guides visit Lisbon – three of which were from Widnes.

“You couldn’t have got three more different people on the trip, but, despite their differences, they pulled together,” said Rachel.

“They absolutely nailed it and have been great ambassadors coming back.”