I have decided to embark upon a sponsored slim which I have already started on 1 May 2011 for two reasons; its a good excuse to raise money for such an awesome charity especially as Alice Plunkett is a good friend, and with a history of diabetes in my family, it is time to slim down.

My target weight loss is a minimum of 4 and maximum of 5 stone by the end of 2011. There were two witnesses at the original weigh in and I have started well with 8 Ilbs disappearing in three weeks.

The Eloise and Katie Memorial Trust funds small projects that directly make a real difference to the lives of young people, including:

• a riding and stable management course for disaffected young people in Merseyside run by Fairbridge
• the Eloise Plunkett Award - an annual study/travel scholarship for female civil engineers
• music workshops at The Royal Albert Hall run by the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Funds raised for The Eloise and Katie Memorial Trust will not be wasted on bureaucracy, and every penny will go straight to where it is needed. Thus donations to large campaigns will be avoided, and the trustees aim to give their time to run the trust free of charge and covering costs themselves.

The trust was set up in 2003 in memory of sisters Eloise and Katie Plunkett who both died from cancer before they were 30.