South Wales Cyclists raise over £30,000

Helena Jones, Diane Engelhardt, Justine Pickering, Therese Long, Martin Higgins, Richard Lansdown and Katie Partington

A group of 27 novice cyclists from South Wales have completed a London to Paris challenge which saw them cycling up to eighty miles a day through the mountains of Normandy in aid of the NSPCC’s Building Brighter Futures Appeal.

The team, who set off from Greenwich on Thursday 24 September and arrived at the foot of the Eiffel Tower on Sunday 27 September, hope to have raised over £30,000 to help fund a major new child protection centre in Cardiff. The NSPCC’s purpose built Centre for Wales will bring together local services to help children and young people overcome the negative impacts of emotional, physical and sexual abuse. The Centre will also enable the children’s charity to continue the pioneering work of its existing domestic abuse service.

Therese Long, a member of the NSPCC’s Building Brighter Futures Appeal Board who came up with the fundraising idea and recruited the team of cyclists, said: “Despite the team having trained hard with regular practice rides, the challenge was a hundred times tougher than we had imagined. The roads were steep and long, but knowing that every penny raised would go towards helping those vulnerable children and young people who so desperately need the help of the NSPCC certainly spurred us on.”

Among those who took part in the 180 mile cycle ride were long-standing NSPCC supporters Diane Engelhardt, wife of Henry, chief executive of Admiral Insurance and Justine Pickering, wife of Welsh Rugby Union Chairman, David.

Sir Stanley Thomas, Chairman of the NSPCC’s Building Brighter Futures Appeal, said: “We are absolutely delighted by what these cyclists have achieved. We owe an enormous debt of gratitude to Therese Long and the team who have given up so much of their time to complete such an ambitious and difficult challenge to help the NSPCC end cruelty to children.

“The new centre will deliver vital help to extremely vulnerable young people in Wales, giving them a brighter future. Thanks to the efforts of donors and supporters, it will be fully operational by the end of this year.”

Sponsoring the bike ride was The Bike Shed in Canton, who not only provided free servicing for the bikes and training tips before the team set off, but also accompanied the cyclists to ensure there were no technical problems along the way. Richard Lansdown, director of The Bike Shed, said: “It’s been great to be able to support such a worthwhile cause. The efforts made by the team to complete this challenge have been truly fantastic, particularly given that a few of the cyclists have had to learn how to ride a bike again.”

To make a donation to the Building Brighter Futures Appeal please visit www.nspcc.org.uk/brighterfutures