My son, Noah, will be swimming the channel this year as part of a 6-person relay team. He has been training so hard since September, continuously working on his speed, endurance, and ability to cope with ‘less warm’ water. It has not been easy - there have been moments when it felt too difficult - but he has persevered and been brilliantly supported by his teammates (the camaraderie is a beautiful thing to see), his teachers and his amazing coach. He completed the qualifier (2 hours at a water temperature of 15 degrees) in Dover dock over May half term and became the youngest team member to qualify to swim this year. He has to wait until after the end of August as you have to be 12 to swim as part of a relay team - so he has done all this training and shown all this resilience at only 11 years old.

Over the last 9 months I have consistently been in awe of each of his achievements (faster swims and colder temperatures endured) and how much his swimming has improved - but more than anything I have been amazed at how each new challenge has taught him how to develop strategies to overcome difficult situations and how, if you keep working and try your best, there is little you cannot achieve. For a neurodiverse child where sometimes the world seems stacked against you, that skill is a priceless gift that I hope will remain with him for the rest of his life.

Along with the rest of the channel swim team, Noah will be raising money for Mencap - a wonderful charity with the goal of supporting people with learning disabilities to live their lives to the full.

In Noah’s words, he wanted to be part of this so that he could hold it in his heart forever. No donation is too small and your support will help him succeed in his Mencap adventure.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.