Castlefields School have a fantastic history with their involvement with the walk - over the past 12 years they have submitted huge junior and senior teams raising tens of thousands of pounds for the school and charities.

This year we will be splitting monies raised 50/50 between the school and the charity, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

The school are showing their support to Nursery pupil Alice who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in January 2024 at the age of 3 and Zachary in year 6 who was diagnosed at the age of 5.

Here is something written by Alice’s and Zachary’s mum to help explain what the charity means to them:

JDRF is the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes research. Improving

lives today and tomorrow by accelerating life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent

and treat T1D and its complications.

“JDRF have supported Alice not only through research to treat, prevent and cure diabetes but also by supporting us to get our heads around this restless and cruel condition. Whilst in hospital she was given a special bear that we use at home to show Alice where she can be injected and also practice actually injecting and finger pricking using the devices we use daily. This has helped her to understand what we are doing and also good practice for us. We were given lots of information about what Type 1 diabetes is and what to expect.”

“Zachary was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes 5 years ago. It was an extremely difficult time adjusting to a new life of up to 10 injections plus finger prick blood tests every day and during the night.

JDRF do amazing work to improve the lives of those living with T1D. As a family, we have seen the benefit of the research that they fund, with the technological advances that are continually being made with insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitoring devices. This technology not only means a reduction in the number of needles Zachary now has to have daily but enables much better control of blood sugar levels which helps to reduce dangerous long term complications such as kidney failure, heart disease, stroke, blindness and amputation. Not to mention a better quality of sleep for us all with less intervention needed during the night.

We are hopeful that their research will continue to make life changing breakthroughs and one day a cure.”