This year I’m fundraising for Children’s Hospice South West to help make the most of short and precious lives.

Children's Hospice South West provides hospice stays, emergency care, palliative care and end of life care at 3 children's hospices; Little Bridge House in Devon, Charlton Farm in North Somerset and Little Harbour in Cornwall.

Coming in to my 3rd year working as the Operations Lead at Charlton Farm I'm still inspired and humbled everyday by the incredible work the staff do and the resilience shown by the families that use our service.

CHSW relies largely on voluntary donations (CHSW receives less than 10% government funding), and as a result of being inspired by the fantastic work I see take place everyday I've decided to take on 3 physical challenges in 2026 to help raise funds in order for this work to continue.

The Challenges are:

Challenge#1 - The Fan Dance

On May 08th 2026 a team of staff from Charlton Farm are taking on 'The Fan Dance' in the Brecon Beacons. The Fan Dance is part of the Fitness and Navigation phase of the selection process for the United Kingdom's Special Forces, as well as 16 Air Assault Brigade's Pathfinder Platoon and as part of Platoon Commanders' Battle Course (PCBC) for all British Infantry Officers

The Fan Dance is a 15-mile (24 km) load bearing march that takes place at the end of the first week of the selection course. It is used as the first major indicator of whether a candidate has the physical and mental aptitude to complete the selection.

Challenge#2 - Ride For Precious Lives 10 - 12 July https://www.chsw.org.uk/event/ride-precious-lives-2026

Ride for Precious Lives is our annual sponsored cycle, covering over 200 miles through challenging, yet breath taking, scenery to raise money for short and precious lives. The route encompasses our 3 children’s hospices; the journey begins on Friday at Charlton Farm in North Somerset, visits Little Bridge House near Barnstaple on Saturday and finishes at Little Harbour near St Austell on Sunday.

Challenge#3 - 3 Bridges Challenge

This challenge will involve me walking approx. 50km from the Severn Bridge to Pulteney Bridge in Bath via Bristol's iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge.