Thank you for visiting our St Matthew’s Charity Walk information page, below is everything you need to know for the big day!
What
The walk will cover a distance of 6.5 miles across a mixture of terranes, with most of the route taking place along the Barton and Warden Hills. All of the money you raise on the day, along with the bike ride and the fundraising taking place in school will go to our chosen charity, Macmillan Cancer Support. The event is being held in memory of Emma Kristic, a much loved member of St Matthew’s staff who sadly passed away to Cancer last year.
Text: QBBH73
Followed by the amount: £2/£5/£10
And send to: 70070
When
The event is taking place on Saturday 27th April 2019, the walk starts at 2pm from Barton Rovers FC (MK45 4LQ), please arrive at least 30 minutes before the start to allow time to sign in, pick up your walk pack and listen to the pre-walk briefing as well as take part in the group warm up run by Natalie Lawrence from Barton Boot Camps.
Parking is available at the football club, however we advise you either get dropped off at the start or take advantage of the free bus leaving St Matthew’s Primary School (LU2 0NJ) at 12:30pm. There will be parking available at St Matthew’s Primary School from 12pm for those using the bus. Seats on the bus will be available at a first come first serve basis; we will inform you when this is available to be booked.
Who
The walk is open to all St Matthew’s current and past staff as well as their families. This event has been created as a way to remember Emma and raise money for the charity that supported her and her family when they needed it most!
We also want it to be way to bring our St Matthew’s community together through a common goal of taking on a challenge and achieving goals. For this reason we would love as many people as possible to either take part or come down to the finish line event at the school and support their friends and family members as they cross the finish line.
Remember that your children are able to join in the walk as well, but must be accompanied by a responsible adult. Children are FREE to walk but you can chose to purchase an event T-shirt for them and they can still fundraise!
At the finish
After you finish their will be food and drink available as well as music, we would love everyone to stick around for a while and support the walkers as they cross the finish line. We estimate that the walk will take between 2 and 3 hours to complete, cold drinks and food will be available as soon as you finish and hot food will be served from 4:30pm.
Fundraising
Our fundraising target across all the elements of our event is £5,000, and with everyone’s help we feel we can reach this goal. Please promote the Just Giving Page (going live on 8/2/19) and use the text number to encourage as many people as possible to donate!
There is a minimum fundraising target of £20 per walker.
Fundraising Tips
- If you are training for the walk then share you progress on social media with the fundraising link
- Ask people to sponsor you £1 per mile or kilometre you complete, this may raise people’s donations from £5 to £6.5, or even £10 for the 10 kilometres.
- Put the link to the Just Giving page as your email signature
- Advertise a personal fundraising target for yourself with the twist that if you achieve it you do the walk in fancy dress!
Kit List
- Comfortable/sturdy boots or trainers that you have used before
- Appropriate layers for the temperature
- Water proof jacket
- Back pack
- Refillable water bottle (there will be no cups available at the water stations)
- Any energy foods/snacks you will need during the walk
- Dry clothes for after the walk
- Mobile phone
Note: The route is fairly sturdy underfoot the whole way, but if it is wet we advise wearing walking boots
The Route
The route covers a mixture of terranes, with the first two thirds of the route being on the Barton and Warden Hills, with the last part covering the paths back to school. The route does include 2 hills with gentle inclines.
There will be a briefing on the day that will explain the route in greater detail, you will also have a map in your event day packs. You will be following the green arrows on white background all along the route; there will also be two refreshments stations as well as route marshals. However there are no toilet facilities, so go before you leave!!!
How fit do I need to be?
As long as you are of good general health and are able to walk for a couple of hours at a steady speed then you will be fine. We do advise that you do go for a few walks beforehand so you are used to walking on the terrane and hills.
If you wish to take part in some more structured training follow this link: https://www.verywellfit.com/10k-walk-training-schedule-for-beginners-3435037