Twelve members of the Box Hill School community have signed up to Run Reigate (Half Marathon, 10km or 5km) in support of our colleague Simon Powell. Simon has taught at Box Hill School for over 25 years and is the Director of Curriculum and Admissions on the Senior Leadership Team. Simon was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in 2018. We aim to raise awareness of MND and to raise more than £1,000 towards research that will bring us closer to a cure for MND.

MND affects up to 5,000 adults in the UK at any one time. There is a 1 in 300 risk of getting MND across a lifetime. It can affect adults of any age, but is more likely to affect people over 50.

With motor neurone disease, known as MND, messages from the motor neurones gradually stop reaching the muscles. This leads the muscles to weaken, stiffen and waste, which can affect how you walk, talk, eat, drink and breathe. Some people also get changes to their thinking and behaviour, but the disease affects everyone differently. Not all symptoms will affect everyone, or in the same order. Symptoms also progress at varying speeds, which makes the course of the disease difficult to predict.

MND is life-shortening and there is no cure. Although the disease will progress, symptoms can be managed to help achieve the best possible quality of life.