The death in 1997 of 16-year-old Chantelle Bleu, after inhaling gas from an aerosol, was a terrible shock to her friends, to the Baildon community in which she lived and particularly to her family.

Despite this dreadful tragedy Chantelle's parents, Pat and Richard, found the strength to create a memorial fund to their daughter as a way of raising awareness of the dangers of volatile substance abuse among other young people.

The support centre the fund runs in Bradford reaches out to children and teenagers through the schools and youth organisations. But the fund has been able to encourage young people in other ways too - notably through the awards for Outstanding Achievement Against Adversity.

This is a splendid way of acknowledging the resilience, courage and strength of character of people aged between 11 and 16 who have succeeded at school despite the problems in their lives: nominees like wheelchair-bound Hanifa Rashid, who is described by her teacher as confident, hard-working and fiercely independent; or Kelly Mudd, who despite regular treatment for cancerous tumours is said to be an inspiration to everyone at her school; or Peter Swayckyi, who successfully combines looking after his MS-afflicted mother with his schoolwork.

The awards are a fitting memorial to Chantelle, who in her short life showed sympathy, kindness and compassion to others and should not have died in such tragic circumstances. They are also a tribute to Pat and Richard Bleu, who have created something positive out of their terrible loss of a much-loved daughter.