BIG-HEARTED best friends from primary school have stepped up to raise over £1,700 for charity, after they were concerned that worried children might not have anyone to talk to during the Coronavirus crisis.
Poppy Wood, five, and six-year-old Minnie Biggs-Poyner each climbed 632 steps – the equivalent of Big Ben – in their homes as part of the NSPCC’s Big Climb Challenge.
Poppy’s proud mum Gemma said: “Poppy has had some big questions about the Coronavirus and they’ve caused her a lot of worry.
“I stumbled across a post from the NSPCC about a surge in calls to the helpline from children with worries just like her. I shared this information with Poppy and the comfort she felt at knowing she was not alone with feeling uneasy in lockdown really lifted her.
“But then when she realised there were lots of children who might not have someone at home to talk to, she wanted to help.
“It gave her a fire in her belly and something positive to focus on.
“She loved the idea of climbing to the top of a landmark and after learning all about London at school, it could only be Big Ben!”
Poppy told Minnie, her friend from Rugby Free Primary School, about the challenge and the pair became a team.
In the run-up to the challenge, the girls made leaflets and delivered them around their neighbourhoods with the help of their parents, spoke to family via video calls to tell them about their fund-raising efforts, and made a video to share their training.
So far they have smashed through their initial £400 target, raising £1,719 which will rise to over £2,000 after Gift Aid – enough to allow the NSPCC to answer calls from 500 worried children.
Gemma said: “Both myself and Minnie’s mum Francesca are incredibly proud of Poppy and Minnie.
“They are a beautiful reminder that ‘in a world where you can be anything, be kind’.”
Visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/thebigclimb2020-poppyandgemma to donate.
