As part of the Come Together for Arthur campaign to raise much-needed money for Noah's Ark children's hospice in Barnet, I will be setting my own challenge. This is to walk from my house in Borehamwood to a bench in Gordon Square, London and back again.

Here is why!!!

My daughter-in-law, Ani, started working for Noah's Ark in Aug 2017 and in 2019, she became pregnant with my first grandchild. The pregnancy went well and a beautiful boy, Arthur, was born on 12 June 2020 but it soon became evident that something was wrong. After much investigation, it was discovered that our little boy was born with a life-limiting condition called Alexander Disease and because it presented itself so early, as Neonatal, it meant that Arthur's life expectancy was 2 years at best.

Arthur, a.k.a Arthur Bear, spent his first 6 weeks in hospital between Barnet, UCLH and Great Ormond Street but because of the covid restrictions, only his mummy, Ani, and his daddy (my son) Barclay were allowed to spend time with him.

During this time, Barclay and Ani would spend a little time in some of the green spaces nearby and it was whilst sitting on a bench in Gordon Square that they came up with his name, Arthur Dylan Ballard. They later went on to pay for this bench to be restored and there is now a small plaque on it that bears his name.

When Arthur was well enough to leave hospital, Barclay, Ani and Arthur stayed in one of the family rooms at the Ark, where many of Arthur's extended family were able to meet him for the first time. We had become a Noah's Ark family.

Sadly, Arthur died at 12 weeks old. With the help of the Ark, Arthur was able to spend some hours at home so that family members could come and say goodbye and give him their last cuddles. His mummy and daddy then spent some time alone with Arthur at the Ark.

The support that the Ark gave was tremendous and they helped Barclay and Ani to navigate the very sad task of burying their little boy.

For that, Noah's Ark holds a special place in my heart, as does Arthur's bench in Gordon Square but most importantly, Arthur does.

He is in my thoughts every day. So to celebrate Arthur's 5th birthday on 12 June, I will be walking from my home to Arthur's bench in Gordon Square via Barnet, Arthur's home town, and back again. Approx 23 miles, more if I get lost.

So please give what you can to this most deserving charity and if you can't, please, please share with anybody that you feel would like to give to the Ark.

It does such good work, not only does it deal with the sad stuff but it gives family support to the siblings and parents of children with life-limiting conditions all over North London and surrounding areas, not only at the Ark but also in the families' homes. It creates fun days out and helps to build happy memories that would be a struggle without the Ark's team of staff, carers, nurses and fun volunteers.

Thank you for you support.