Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Inspired by my colleagues who ran the 2016 London Marathon, I thought that I could give it a go - despite the fact I hadn’t ran since my PE lessons 20 years earlier and had bunked off most of those. I saw a photo of a marathon finisher with an actual tumble drier strapped to his back (google it) and thought how hard can it be? Well, really quite hard as I’m now finding out. I started the Couch to 5k programme in May 2016 and struggled to run 60 seconds before collapsing in a heap. However, I persevered and ran 5k fairly regularly until Christmas. On 1st January I pushed myself to run 8k and thought my legs would fall off. On 6th January I found out that I’d secured a golden bond place for Encourage and needed to up my training asap. To make all the sweat and pain worth it (not to mention the pain of my family constantly listening to me whinging about how knackered I am) please sponsor me if you can.

The money that I raise will go towards supported housing for adults with learning disabilities and/or mental health issues. Encourage works in partnership with care providers to deliver care and support services for adults with a variety of needs. For example, in ‘Supported Living’, tenants live in their own self-contained accommodation with Supported Housing Officers providing support to help with tasks like paying rent and bills, furnishing their home, making sure their home is secure and finding out about their local area so that they can get out and about safely. For many tenants, this is the first time they have had a home to call their own and Encourage helps them develop skills so they can live more independently.

Where customers live in registered care homes, Encourage aims to provide a warm and welcoming environment with services that meet the needs of the individual. Residents will have support around the clock and are consulted and involved in decisions that will affect them.

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.

Thank you so much for your support.

Cherise