Every Mile is for Leo

I've always enjoyed setting myself running challenges. Over the years I've completed several half marathons and a marathon, and I've learnt that running can test you both physically and mentally.

But no race, no matter how tough, compares to watching your newborn child fight for their life.

That's why the London Marathon 2027 means so much to me.

I'm not running for a personal achievement (although will I be logging this on Strava? Why yes, yes I will..) I'm running because I want to raise money for, and awareness of, Group B Strep Support.

13th April 2021 was both one of the best and worst days of our lives. Within hours of being born, Leo was rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and placed on life support. There were no guarantees that he would make it through the night and his little body was working hard to fight off some unknown disease.

Eventually, tests showed he had Group B Strep & Sepsis and we spent two agonising weeks watching him undergo numerous tests and procedures... attached to many tubes, wires and machines... with no certainty of what the future would hold, or that there even would be a future at all.

Thankfully, Leo was one of the lucky ones. Because the reality is that each month in the UK and Republic of Ireland, 4 babies die from their Group B Strep infection.

We will forever be grateful for the incredible care, expertise and dedication of the team at Warrington Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. It is entirely thanks to them that Leo made a full recovery and is the healthy, happy and energetic little 5-year-old that we know today.

In 2026, both Leo and his older brother Archie proudly completed the London Mini Marathon, and we're hoping they'll be back on the start line again in 2027. Watching them run, laugh and enjoy life is a reminder of just how fortunate we are, and why raising awareness of Group B Strep is so important.

Every step I take towards the finish line in London 2027 will be inspired by Leo's journey, the incredible NHS staff who helped save him, and the families who are facing similar challenges today.

Every mile I run will be for Leo, for families currently facing their own battle, and for every baby who deserves the best possible start in life.

Most Group B Strep infections are preventable and I hope that, by raising money for this amazing charity, less babies and their families will suffer at the hands of Group B Strep.