About

On Saturday 22nd August 2020, we will be attempting to walk from London to Brighton in a day. We will be starting at Old Deer Park in Richmond and finishing at Brighton Pier, some 103km (64 miles) away. If that wasn't enough, the route also involves c.1500m of ascent, 150m more than Ben Nevis...

We are doing this for the amazing charity Dig Deep, you can read more about the vital work they do below. Obviously the last few months have been extremely difficult for many charities, so anything you can give is really appreciated.

We are taking on this challenge as part of our fundrasing for our trip to Kilimanjaro in summer 2021. For this, we have both committed to raise £2,500 each for Dig Deep Africa, all money donated will therefore be split evenly between our two pages for Dig Deep.

Dig Deep help schools and communities get access to water and sanitation and break the cycle of poverty. They work to build taps and toilets; to ensure that water and sanitation services are maintained for the long term, and to provide vital hygiene training to the next generation.

These facilities are something that is easy to take for granted, but in Kenya, currently 8 out of 10 people lack access to clean water and sanitation. This causes entirely preventable disease which disrupts children from learning and parents from earning. It leaves young children stunted from malnourishment and particularly prevents girls from reaching their full potential. Dig Deep is working to change this by:

• Building infrastructure that will provide a school or community with reliable, clean water (normally by installing a rainwater harvesting system). They use locally available materials, training up local artisans and community groups to ensure that the equipment can be managed and maintained in the long term. The clean water improves health, saves time that was previously used for collecting water and positively impacts school attendance and attainment.
• Building ventilated improved pit latrines in schools, providing children with a safe, hygienic and private space in which to go to the toilet. While this sounds simple, it has a huge impact on children’s health and school attendance, particularly for teenage girls. They also promote the construction of latrines at people's homes to end the practice of open defecation which contributes to the spread of disease and mobilise communities to build their own at every home in the locality.
• Training teachers and community health workers in health and hygiene, ensuring that communities understand how diseases spread and what they need to do to keep themselves and their families healthy. Training these key community members to teach others means the knowledge remains embedded and is delivered sensitively. They also run menstrual hygiene training, breaking down stigma, correcting misinformation and giving girls the tools and insight they need to continue their education and role in the community when menstruating.

Anything you can spare is massively appreciated x