Dear friends,

My predicament is simple if somewhat daunting  - having decided 2 months  ago to run my first ever marathon here in London on 26th April on behalf of the NSPCC Helpline, an anonymous friend offered to match, £ for £, any donations I received up to a maximum contribution of £100,000. I am therefore trying to drum up as many pledges as possible so that we get as close to the £100,000 target as possible. If we were successful and raised £200,000, this would result, once the associated basic rate and transitional tax relief reclaims were added, in a grand total of £256,400 flowing into the coffers of the NSPCC Helpline.

The NSPCC Helpline enables anyone who is concerned about the welfare of a baby, child or young person to have someone to turn to. It provides specialised support, advice and information and is the only service offering anonymous free telephone and email access to trained child protection staff 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

I am acutely aware of the recessionary times we’re presently facing, and yet feel emboldened to ask for your support given that the demands on the NSPCC tend to increase dramatically during tough economic conditions. Last year, Helpline received over 100,000 calls from the public, equivalent to 273 a day, and yet shockingly, over 33% of the calls went unanswered due to the various constraints on the Helpline service. We need to change this and ensure that all such calls are answered, without exception. It is harrowing to note that in 2008, over 9,000 calls to the Helpline were sufficiently serious to be referred to either the Police or Social Services. A third of these cases were previously unknown to the relevant authorities.

To the extent that you are prepared to make a donation, I’d be very grateful. If not, thanks anyway for taking the time to read this message.

Best regards,

Philip