I moved to Manchester almost eight years ago now and it's a city that I fell in love with almost immediately. The music, the culture, the sport, the nightlife, the people. I could never see myself anywhere else. 

So to see a city that I love, people I love, facing extreme poverty and homelessness breaks my heart.

In the last 12 years, we've seen a huge rise in homelessness across the country and Manchester is no exception. The number of homeless people in Manchester is almost eight times higher than anywhere else in the North West, with almost 7,000 people living in the city currently without a home. That's 1 in 66 people.

With the £20 per week Universal Credit uplift being scrapped, National Insurance tax rises, inflation and energy prices soaring, there's no doubt that this will push more people into extreme poverty and put them at risk of homelessness.

With the government failing to tackle this crisis, charities like Lifeshare are having to fill the gaps and provide much-needed support for those in need.

Lifeshare is Manchester's oldest homelessness charity and I first worked with them on a documentary about homelessness and addiction five years ago. I saw first hand the fantastic work they do.

They've provided thousands of meals and made supportive interventions for those in crisis. Without charities like this the situation would be a whole lot worse.

I've never run a marathon before, in fact I'd never run more than three or four miles prior to the start of this. I've been training for the last four months now, running four times a week. I can't begin to tell you the amount of injuries, blisters and grim Manchester weather I've had to experience along the way, but raising money for a brilliant cause like this makes it all worthwhile.

Times are tough at the moment, but any support you can give, however much, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Alex