Throughout June and July, a group of eleven colleagues from Spurgeons have been stretching their legs to raise vital funds to support children who are impacted by imprisonment. They’ve each taken on the 100 Miles for Families challenge – a distance chosen because it reflects the average round-trip a child must make just to see a parent in prison.
The team, including Chair of Trustees Mike Rebeiro and many of those who work and volunteer directly with prisoners and their families, have raised almost £5,000 so far and covered more than 1,500 miles through a combination of running, walking, cycling and paddleboarding. There were plenty of innovative solutions to getting their miles in – walking the school run, running while on holiday, and trustee Colin Jones undertook the Wexford-Pembrokeshire Pilgrim Way, following in the footsteps of St Aidan’s sixth century journey from Ferns in Ireland to meet his teacher and mentor, St David, in Wales.
Making a difference
“The funds we’ve raised will make a real difference to the children we work with”, said Lucy Binns, Prisons Family Hub lead. “We’ll be able to ensure more children can get the help they so vitally need and, importantly, keep those family ties together to ensure the best outcome for everyone involved.”
Lucy has been taking on the challenge with her son Jack and said “it was hard work and really made us reflect on just how far 100 miles is - AND we had a whole month to do it in - not just a day!”
In addition to the interventions and support they provide the dads in prison and their families, Lucy and her team hold regular family days during which the children have the chance to enjoy relaxed, quality time with their dad, playing together in a more child focused session. Alongside this, the team facilitate the filming of Storybook dad videos, where dads record their children a story, run homework clubs, provide counselling and much more.
All the funds raised will support this vital work. Maintaining positive family ties has been shown to reduce reoffending by 39%, giving children the stability they need and offering hope for a better future.
Support from Saints
The team were also supported by the Saints Foundation, the official charity of Southampton FC. Participants got together at St Mary’s Stadium and took on laps of the pitch to boost their totals. Saints have also donated to the campaign and the Foundation use the power of football to inspire and support people across local communities, including close work with Spurgeons at HMP Winchester.
Spurgeons have been working within HMP Winchester since 2011 and just last year the dedicated staff and volunteers supported 7,507 adult visitors and 1,307 children, illustrating the reach and importance of their work.
Are you up for the challenge?
We would love our supporters to join in however they wish and help us to reach our target. You can take part however you wish – we’ve produced a free fundraising pack and a helpful website to show you how. We’ll give you all you need to make your challenge a success. Find out more here.
If you don’t feel able to take part, please don’t worry. You can also support those fundraising by donating to the campaign here. A donation of £10 could provide a pencil case and stationery set for a child attending a homework club, £20 could help us to arrange a recorded bedtime story and £56 would pay for a Spurgeons counselling session for a child who needs it.
