When I took up running nearly 5 years ago I thought running 5k was going to be a big challenge - and it was! But by the time I completed that challenge I realised that I actually enjoyed running and wanted to continue, no more than 5k though....well maybe just one 10k....or perhaps a half marathon....but definitely not a full marathon. Fast forward a few years and I couldn't resist the excitement and challenge of running the London Marathon for a charity I truly believe in:

Beanstalk

Illiteracy is a persistent problem in the UK:

• 34% of children left primary school last year unable to read to the required level
• 25% of young offenders have reading skills below that of an average 7 year old
• Poor literacy skills cost the UK economy £81 billion a year

Beanstalk is working to rewrite the story and aiming to tackle childhood illiteracy in England through powerful volunteer-led programmes. We recruit and train reading helpers who go into local schools in order to help children who have fallen behind.

Having worked for Beanstalk for 2 years, and volunteered with them for 3 years before that, I have seen first hand the difference we can make. With your help we can reach our goal to support 30,000 children a year by 2020.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.