A YOUNG man from Droitwich who turned his life around through rugby has won a national award for his achievement.

Joe Melfah, 19, who spent time in a young offender institute, was nominated for the prize by staff at Worcester Warriors who helped him gain skills to enter a career in engineering.

Since leaving the institute, Mr Melfah has worked with the club through Premiership Rugby's HITZ programme to gain his GCSEs, learn interview skills and how to work as part of a team.

At a glittering awards ceremony in London, he fought off competition from other hopefuls to win the HITZ Young Achiever Award.

"Without HITZ I don't know where I would be, I think I'd be back in the institute," said Mr Melfah, who is just one of thousands of HITZ participants in the UK.

He continued: "I didn't know what to do when I came out, I didn’t know I had a career ahead of me, but now I do.

"Rugby motivated me, because I love rugby.

"I wasn’t motivated to do anything and now I am, to go and apply for new jobs and do extended learning.

"I needed to get my GCSEs to actually apply. I’ve got them, so I can apply for any apprenticeship I want to.

"Coming from where I did, to where I am now, has made me think I can actually do what I want to in life and if I focus on something I can get there."

Stuart Brooks, Worcester Warriors HITZ officer, said: "Joe has proved a special individual after blossoming in the programme. Joe is a bit different from any learner that I’ve worked with previously.

"He knew he needed a change and he knew where he wanted to go.

"He has taken himself out of his environment, where he was causing trouble and employers can now look at Joe and say ‘yes, he is a responsible young man’.

"He knows he has made mistakes and he can change and he can offer something back to the community that he is in."

The HITZ programme uses rugby to increase young people's confidence and gives them skills to get back into education. It is run in partnership with Barclays, Comic Relief, Land Rover and Wooden Spoon.

For more information visit hitzrugby.com