A GIRL from Bolton is thought to have become one of the world's youngest reiki masters.

Kennedy Fitzsimmons began her training three years ago but traces her influences to the therapeutic discipline before she was born.

The 15-year-old, a pupil of Mount St Joseph RC School in Farnworth, said: "I think that I am one of the youngest masters of reiki in the world. The youngest person in the USA is 26. It is not generally something younger people study but I have always had an interest because of my mum Marie.

"When she was pregnant with me she practised reiki on me and passed on to me the positive energies."

The aim of the Japanese inspired healing is to target seven different areas from which energies flow.

Reiki derives from two words in which rei means a higher power and ki means life force.

Kennedy, who wants to become a sports therapist, says the aim is to balance up the energies by creating equanimity between negative and positive by the laying on of hands or by channelling the individual's energies.

She explains: "The benefits of reiki is that it can calm you down.

"Equally, it is very individual to the person, so it could include those individuals who might have aches and pains or some chronic illness and the treatment can release some of the stress and the pain."

Kennedy practises her healing methods on members of her family, whilst at school she is also a member of the netball team.

She added: "To become a master of reiki is to my mind a massive achievement and fulfils an equally massive goal of mine at an early age and it is something I will hopefully use in the future when I become a therapist."