My name is Barrie Compton, and I’m running the Robin Hood Marathon in Nottingham on September 24th. Some people may have long held ambitions to buy a sports car as they enter mid-life. Well I’m too tight for that, so thought I may as well put my ambition of running a marathon to good use by raising some money for two fantastic causes.

I have chosen 2 worthy charities to share my fundraising with; The Phoenix School in Peterborough and Breast Cancer Now .

The Phoenix School is a special school for children with severe and profound learning and physical disabilities. The School ensures an environment of fun and diverse learning for the students, enabling them to enjoy a fulfilling education where they prosper in an environment where everyone is treated with dignity, respect and is of equal worth. They have been rated by Ofsted as outstanding.

I have seen at first hand the tireless dedication of the parents and staff to enrich the lives of the pupils. Having attended fundraising events that have raised valuable funds to buy outdoor equipment, minibuses, touchscreen and sensory equipment as well as well needed holidays, I wanted to make my own personal contribution.

Breast Cancer Now is a charity that has sadly come into our lives with close friends and family being affected by this devastating, life-changing condition. Luckily we have had very positive outcomes, but this does not detract from the importance of awareness and the need for fundraising to help in the advancement of treatments and cures.

Breast Cancer Now’s aim is to stop women dying from breast cancer by 2050. Currently funding the most impactful research, they support almost 450 researchers and are funding 90 research grants worth almost £24 million at 29 institutions across the UK and Ireland.

Their research is focused on four key areas – risk and prevention, early detection and diagnosis, treatment and secondary breast cancer. They believe that this approach to research will allow them to achieve their ambition and stop breast cancer taking lives.

Thank you for taking the time to look at my fundraising page and my reasons behind it. Any contribution you can make is greatly appreciated and will go a long way to helping many people.