Star of the nation’s favourite soap and Leeds United fan, Coronation Street's Colson Smith, has become an official ambassador for the Leeds United Foundation.

The teenage actor takes on the role of the Foundation’s NCS (National Citizen Service) Ambassador, a programme that brings together young people aged 16 and 17 years old from different backgrounds on an outward bounds residential programme to help them develop greater confidence, self-awareness and responsibility.

Colson recently took time out from filming on the famous cobbles to join the Foundation on their Autumn NCS programme, helping out fellow teenagers whilst filming a new promotional video for the club’s official charity.

The 17-year-old has received wide-scale critical acclaim for his role in the soap, receiving a host of nominations for his role as the loveable, Craig Tinker.

Colson said: "To be joining the great roster of Leeds United Foundation Ambassadors is quite an honour.

"When I was offered the role as NCS Ambassador I was delighted to accept. I’m a huge United fan and an even bigger fan of the work the club’s charity does in the community. In recent times the Foundation has made huge strides and is the heartbeat of both the community and the club.

“The amount of work they do to help people most in need, young and old, is quite phenomenal. As a city and a county, we should be really proud and I will help out in any way I can to make sure we help more people on an even greater scale.

“Taking a little time out of my Corrie filming to join the Autumn NCS has been great fun and I’d encourage every 16 or 17 year old to give it a go, you’ll have a blast and make loads of new friends.”

Simon Fox, Head of Partnership Development for the Foundation, said: “Colson is a great illustration of how rapidly young people can develop into top class exponents of their chosen profession.

"In just over 4 years he has become a household name in a soap that has been part of the British fabric for over 50 years.

“We’re absolutely thrilled he has joined us as NCS Ambassador and huge credit to him for getting involved on our outward bounds element of the course and helping out with our filming. He was a massive hit with the youngsters and he’s a super addition to the Foundation as NCS Ambassador."

The Castleford-based youngster joins Ricky Wilson, Tony Yeboah, Josh Warrington and Vinnie Jones as an Ambassador for the Foundation.

For an exclusive look at the new Foundation NCS video, click here. For more details contact ncs@leedsunited.com