My newspaper, the Barnet Times, has convinced me to take part in a charity London to Paris cycle ride in May.

My primary reason for doing it is to get buttocks of steel - but there is the added bonus of raising a bit of cash for the Educational Frontier Trust (EFT), an organisation that supports the Kisima Pastoralists' Centre, a charity for children from northern Kenya.

The area is hampered by drought, attacks from bandits, ethnic clashes, and a lack of infrastructure and basic public services, and it is the aim of the Christian charity to help local children overcome these problems.

The long-term aim of the charity is to help farmers and herders establish a sustainable community, with better education and training to allow them to be less dependent on charity aid.

So I would hugely grateful for any bit of cash you feel able to send my way - many thanks!

Love Bex

The Barnet Times, along with its sister paper, the Harrow Times, will be following the progress of the London to Paris bike ride. For more information on the charity's work, visit www.harrowtimes.co.uk/charity