Students from a Telford secondary school have raised hundreds of pounds for a charity very close to their hearts – by walking a collective distance of more than four marathons.
New Road Academy, in Wrockwardine Wood, wanted to raise funds for Child Bereavement UK, which supports children and young people when someone important to them has died or is not expected to live.
A group of 15 students, who all have been impacted in some way by family bereavement, completed 500 laps of the running track at Telford Athletics Club – racking up a total of 20,000 metres.
“We have a child bereavement counselling group in school, and were looking to reach out to as many people as possible at the school,” explained Clare Tabberer, the academy’s lead practitioner and pastoral lead.
“Child Bereavement UK launched a challenge for people to walk 127km in July – because 127 children in the UK are newly bereaved of a parent or caregiver each day.
“We thought we could raise that target a bit, so we decided to go for 500 laps of the running track in the space of just one day.
Students from years 7-10 took part, and Clare said many of them formed new bonds during the day which may otherwise never have happened.
“It’s great that we have been able to raise money for Child Bereavement UK, but it’s also really pleasing to see this supportive culture also come out of it as well.”
The academy looks set to smash through its original fundraising target of £500. A JustGiving page has been set up for anyone who wants to donate: https://www.justgiving.com/page/new-road-academy-1?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL
Clare said: “We’ve had so many students in school asking if they can help, once they heard about what we were doing, so we are now going to be looking to do something for this charity every year.
“You don’t always realise how many children in your own school are impacted by bereavements, because some choose not to talk about it. It’s so important to be able to support our children with their mental wellbeing.”
