My name is Tom Pritchard and I am 19 years old. I will be attempting to swim the gruelling 21 miles across the English Channel mid June 2019. The training is going to be tough and with the everage crossing time being 15 hours its going to be a challenge to say the least.

However, my challenge pales into insignificance when i compare it to the daily challenges faced by the many families dealing with children with cancer.

I am doing this to help raise as much money as possible for CHICS charity. CHICS is a childrens cancer charity based out of liverpool that provides support to the families and the children dealing with a cancer diagnosis. With parents having to leave work and support their loved ones life can be very tough and they can sometimes slip into financial difficulties. The charity provides days out, weekends away, toys, meet and greets and even things like food shopping for the families. I know what kind of a difference £20,000 will make to this charity.

Cassius is only 12 years old and has already been diagnosed with leukemia 3 times in his short life. He is currently waiting for pioneering new treatment to help cure his condition. Any support we could help give cassius and his family and other children like him will make an enormous impact.

Not just a cake sale, a marathon or even a sky dive!!!

They are all important and I know that every little contribution makes a difference that is greatly appreciated but I wanted to take on a challenge that is rarely attempted never mind completed. Did you know that more people have stood on top of Mount Everest than swum across the channel!!! 21 miles in cold water with swarms of jelly fish and huge tankers passing by is what Ive decided to do.

Im mad but Im not totally stupid and Im a strong and keen swimmer. However, I know this will require hundreds of hours training in and out of water. It will consist of swimming in temperatures below 16 degrees celcius in lakes, seas and docks which will definitely make the challenge a whole lot harder. Im excited but apprehensive to what lies ahead!!!

So please dig deep and share, share and share some more!!

There will be some costs to complete the challenge but I am approaching to businesses for sponsorship to pay these costs and so my aim is that every penny raised goes directly to the charity.

So please, please dig deep and donate what you can to a truly amazing charity. I will do my best to complete my end of the deal and if everyone works together it can make a massive difference to CHICS.