In September 2020 Hughie, then aged 10, was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. His best friend Freddie, then aged 9, wanted to help so set himself the challenge of running a Junior Park Run – 2km – every day for 50 days, finishing on Christmas Day. His initial target of £1000 was smashed within days and it wasn’t long before his challenge had captured the interest of the local media. Appearances on the BBC, Granada, Sky Sports and This Morning, finished off with a live broadcast by BBC Breakfast at 8am on Christmas Day morning which saw Hughie cheering Freddie on for his last 2km (before opening any presents!) catapulted their fundraising to another level. So far the boys have raised over £350K for RMCH which has been used to buy fresh fruit for Hughie’s ward as well as vital equipment to help in A&E, training and renovating the Teen Zone and the rooftop play area at the hospital.
Their fundraising was recognised by BBC Radio Lancashire when they won a Pride Of Lancashire award in 2021. They also won the fundraising award at the Pride Of Manchester and then went on to be awarded Young Fundraisers at the Pride Of Britain Awards in November 2021. On 20th October 2022, the boys were also given a British Citizens youth Award in recognition of their fundraising.
With Hughie feeling better, the boys wanted to take on another challenge that they could do together. Both Hughie and Freddie are huge football fans so they came up with the idea of running another 100km each by completing 1km around the pitch of every EFL and Premiership football ground – 92 in total. The other 8km they are hoping to complete at the National Stadiums and other notable sporting grounds.
They kicked off on Boxing Day 2021 at Turf Moor, home of Burnley FC and are now embarking on a national adventure ticking off every ground on the list. The money they raise here today on their 35th lap at The Den will go towards supporting children with cancer at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
We are delighted to say that Hughie successfully completed his treatment for leukaemia on 27 January 2024.