On Saturday 22nd of June, five runners will begin a bespoke marathon, starting and finishing in Brockwell Park in south London. As they pound the pavement to spell out ‘NHS’ on London’s streets, their route will take them directly past King’s College Hospital where fantastic NHS staff have continuously dedicated themselves to treating Covid-19 patients.
The idea to create this unique marathon route was down to David Robbins, a partner at Deloitte. David ran the London Marathon last year and is looking forward to his alternative marathon. He said:
“Since lockdown I chose running as my daily exercise. My running route took me past King’s College Hospital in London and it made me feel so proud of the amazing work carried out by our NHS. A friend of mine was severely ill with Covid-19 and was treated back to full health by the NHS. I wanted to do my bit to show my appreciation for all the NHS heroes who are simply selfless miracle workers.”
The runners’ fundraising target started at £1,000 and quickly surpassed this. Their target is now £10,000 for our appeal. David recognises that mental health is as important as physical health and added: “It is vital we look to support the long-term impact to frontline workers’ mental health. This amount could fund over 100 one-to-one counselling sessions for NHS individuals as the UK moves from crisis into recovery.”
The five NHS marathon runners are:
- David Robbins
- Susie Pajares
- Tom Fender
- Ben Grew
- Steven Penketh
Help the team reach their target of £10,000 for our Covid-19 Urgent Appeal by donating to their fundraising page here.
Urgent Appeal Grants
Grants given to NHS charities are used to meet the immediate and urgent needs of patients, staff and volunteers. Funding is also going towards helping partnerships outside hospitals, such as hospices, community healthcare and social care, making sure patients leaving hospital have access to the care they need to recover. In the longer term it will also fund programmes to help staff and volunteers recover fully once the crisis has abated, reducing the long-term impact on them and the people they care about.
About the Urgent Appeal
The NHS Charities Together Urgent Appeal acknowledges and supports NHS staff and volunteers caring for COVID-19 patients. It has been put together in liaison with NHS England and national bodies, our member NHS charities and national giving platforms. Click here to donate.
