Hi everyone,

My Wife and I have started fundraising for Heal and Toe charity, a charity very close to our families heart and accessed by our son Otis.

Heal and toe are a north east children’s charity who provide therapy to children with physical difficulties providing free and subsidised therapy to children with disabilities. The charity provides conductive education, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, massage therapy, hydrotherapy and hippotherapy, delivered by highly qualified paediatric therapists operating from two specially adapted buildings in County Durham.

The charity receive no government funding and relies on their paid-for services and fundraising activities to provide a wide range of therapy services. The charity needs to raise £1,000,000 each year.

Heel & Toe aims to support children with disabilities to improve their quality of life and independence so that they can look forward to a future where possibilities and opportunities are not constrained by their disability.

Otis started talking around 1 and shortly after he became non verbal. He has been going to Heel and Toe now for a few month and he is now attempting sounds and the odd word. He is currently awaiting an autism assessment and it is looking likely he will get a diagnosis of apraxia of speech. We are so grateful that this charity can help us and many other children, particularly when the NHS is so stretched at the moment.

I (David) will be running the Wild Deer Trail Ultra Marathon on the 22nd October. This presents itself as a good opportunity for us to raise money for this fantastic charity. Having spent the last 3 weeks with a chest infection, and 3 months off training at the start of the year, the run is going to be no walk in the park! The run itself is approximately 34 miles around the Shotley Bridge / Hamsterely area. More information on the run can be found here: https://wilddeerevents.co.uk/events/36/

Please if you can spare any change, every little helps this charity to proceed to care for children who need a little extra help.