My five-year-old son Charlie suffers from food allergies to dairy (milk), egg and banana where he is at risk of anaphylaxis - a life-threatening allergic reaction that can develop rapidly and is a medical emergency for which he carries adrenaline pens.

Every day is filled with fear, concern and danger for allergy patients when undertaking activities most would deem routine and normal. There is a need to ensure there is better societal awareness and education regarding severe allergies and the risk of anaphylaxis as it remains poorly understood.

This is despite food allergy being the only chronic condition that can take someone from being fine to unconscious within minutes. In cases of anaphylactic death, the average time between consuming a food and cardiorespiratory arrest is only 30 minutes.

There are a number of organisations working hard to transform the lives of allergy sufferers in many ways, from information and communication, to food laws and treatments.

One of these is the amazing Natasha Allergy Research Foundation (NARF) which was set up by the parents of Natasha Ednan-Laperouse who died from anaphylaxis in 2016 at the age of 15. The charity wants to make allergy history by preventing and eradicate allergic disease, starting with food allergy, and create a world that is safe for all individuals (www.narf.org.uk).

Charlie is extremely fortunate to be on a research trial led by University Hospital Southampton and set up by the NARF - The Natasha Clinical Trial - which offers hope for patients with severe allergies. The charity raised £2.5 million to make it happen.

Amazing people working in the name and memory of their daughter. We and so many other allergy families cannot thank them enough for what you are doing for the allergy community and for making this research happen.

The more people know about - and understand - life-threatening allergies the better. Thankfully these brave parents and many others are stepping up to do all they can to help raise awareness and interest and we’re lucky to have people so committed to doing so.

I will be spending 2024 raising funds for the NARF in recognition of the work they are doing and as a small token of appreciation for the mammoth effort of getting a food allergy trial up and running.

I am aiming to raise as much as I can (£3,000 would be nice but ambitious) over the course of the year up to the end of October (after the Great South Run) by completing at least 10k every week and the 10-mile Great South Run in October. I have also added the Great Run Solo Halloween Challenge to complete 12 additional runs of any distance during October.

I will complete, in total, 500k (310 miles) and combine this with various awareness-raising initiatives throughout the year.

Evidence of all training and formal runs will be posted on this page! I will also be keeping a diary of Charlie’s trial appointments and progress.

Come wind, rain, snow (!) or sunshine, day time or at night, I will be out in my Natasha’s charity t-shirt as every opportunity counts in making a difference.

Your support throughout the year will be greatly appreciated.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.