Springboard banks over £100,000 from Nepal trek
The challenge in March saw 30 volunteers, including two Springboard beneficiaries, complete five days of trekking through the Mahalangur mountains. This was followed by a three-day project to help restore the Manju Shree School following the 2015 earthquake and provide it with educational and sporting resources.
Following the trek, Springboard chief executive Anne Pierce said: "The challenge extends people - often beyond their comfort zones. Whether that's pre-trek training, fundraising, camping, battling the weather, trudging up mountains in high altitude, or working out how to build a fence with no instructions or modern equipment, with the nearest shop a three-hour trek away - or the sheer emotion of seeing how communities live in one of the poorest countries in the world."
Funds raised from the expedition support at least 70 more disadvantaged young people in the UK through Springboard programmes to help them overcome their challenges and move into sustainable work.
It is the second such charitable expedition to Nepal by Springboard, which took a group of intrepid trekkers - including The Caterer's hotels editor Janet Harmer - on a trip across the Annapurna mountain range in 2014.
Other Springboard treks have taken place in the Sahara, China, Peru and India.
The 2017 Nepal trekkers have raised £108,000 to date against a target of £135,000 and donations can still be made at mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/annepierce1
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