A former St Albans pupil was presented with his Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award at Buckingham Palace, after walking an 180km trail.
Matthew Shepheard, 19, a former Verulam School pupil now at university in Portsmouth, attended the awards ceremony on Thursday, May 17 at Buckingham Palace.
He was presented with his award by BBC News presenter Naga Muchetty, and Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, who is trustee for the awards, congratulated Matthew on his success.
For his Gold expedition, Matthew walked the GR20 mountain trail in Corsica, which meant taking around 42,000 steps per day according to his Fitbit watch.
The Duke of Edinburgh Award took each young person between 12 and 18 months to complete, and those who achieve a Gold Award have to volunteer, learn a skill, get fit, take part in a residential trip and undertake an expedition in wild country.
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