I'm raising money for a brilliant charity called Red Balloon which supports children who are too frightened to go to school because of bullying, mental health problems and/or other trauma in their lives.

I was particularly struck by Lottie’s story on Red Balloon’s website. She was so badly bullied that she missed five months of school and developed severe anxiety. Following a period in hospital when Lottie was very unwell, her mother found Red Balloon and I’m pleased to say that Lottie went on to thrive and is now at college. Hers is an amazing story - you can find more here: https://www.redballoonlearner.org/stories/

There are apparently 16,000 children missing from school because of bullying and they desperately need Red Balloon's help - either through attending a physical Learner Centre or through Red Balloon of the Air online. So will you sponsor me please? Your generosity will go some way to keeping me warm on those winter roads and trails... which I can tell you first-hand are flipping cold!