Eight Yorkshire Puddings, 6,000 Young Carers and the Loch Ness Monster!

14th July 2015

A hardy team of Sheffield runners are putting their collective best foot forward to run the Loch Ness Marathon and raise much-needed cash for Sheffield's young carers.

Known as the 'Yorkshire Puddings', the eight-strong team consists of Chris Muscroft, Simon Lewis, Duncan Batty, Nigel Abraham, Chris Watson, Scott Blanks, Matt Wilson and Richard Simpson all members of Beauchief Tennis Club. Chris Muscroft is the driving force behind the event, which will see eight Yorkshire Puddings and 12 charity staff and friends travel the 400 miles from Sheffield to Inverness in September. According to Chris, the race came about when a light-hearted conversation about his 40th birthday quickly turned into the quest for a personal challenge and before they knew it, the eight friends were booking their flights up to Scotland! Only three of the eight have run a full marathon before, but with their training in full swing, the team is determined to complete the course in style, and raise as much money as they can. Chris Muscroft, Commercial Director of Highlander IT and Telecoms, said: -As soon as we'd made the decision to run the marathon, we started thinking about who might benefit from us raising a few quid along the way. We genuinely couldn't find anyone better than Sheffield Young Carers Project to support. We know that, provided we can raise enough cash, their work will have a huge impact on young carers all over Sheffield. -I first came across the Project through my role with the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Sheffield Young Carers Project was chosen as their charity of the year in 2012 because everyone was so impressed by their work. I'm delighted to have the chance to do even more to support them now. -Young carers do an incredible job, working hard to support their families. The least we can do is to help them enjoy a break from their caring, and give them somewhere to turn to for support. Sheffield Young Carers Project supports young carers between the ages of eight and 25 from all over Sheffield: young people who work tirelessly to look after family members with a long-term illness, disability, mental health and/or substance misuse issues. Katie Borland, Director of Funding at Sheffield Young Carers, said: -We can't thank the Yorkshire Puddings enough for taking on the Loch Ness Marathon for us. Not only will the team help us raise valuable funds, they will also help us to raise awareness of the work we do to support young carers in Sheffield. -Many people don't realise just how many young carers there are in the city: recent research suggests that a staggering 6,000 children and young people in Sheffield are caring for someone at home. -We are only a small charity so the more people we can reach through events like the Loch Ness Marathon, the more hope we have of tackling the issues that young carers face and hopefully being here to support them well into the future. Katie is just one of a large group of charity staff and friends who will be joining the Yorkshire Puddings in Scotland this September. Denise Anderson, Catriona Foster, Cate Hammond, Ruth Lawson, Samuel Lawson, Laura Selby, Carolyn Taylor and Louise Wright will all be running the Loch Ness Marathon or the slightly less daunting 10km or 5km race. The charity's managing director Sara Gowen and 'Dave the Driver' Anderson will be heading up the support team! Together, the runners are aiming to raise at least £5,000 for Sheffield Young Carers. If you would like to support Chris and the rest of the Yorkshire Puddings, please visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/yorkshirepuddingsdolochness to make your donation today. To find out about more about Sheffield Young Carers, please visit www.sheffieldyoungcarers.org.uk or call Katie Borland on 0114 2584595.