Avon Valley School science teacher completes 100km walk in 48 hours
More than £11,000 has now been raised for a leading mental health charity.
Just a few days after returning to school following the summer holiday, science teacher Erin Anderson-Howe embarked on a 100km ultra challenge on the south coast.
The challenge saw Miss Anderson-Howe and three teammates walk the 100km over just 48 hours. The route began at the seaside town of Eastbourne and finished in Arundel in West Sussex, covering 62 miles and over 2,100m of elevation.
Speaking about why she undertook the ultra-event, Miss Anderson-Howe commented: "My partner sadly lost his younger brother, Ollie, to suicide. We are absolutely passionate about reducing mental health stigma and starting conversations around mental health, to hopefully prevent other families from going through similar experiences.
"We run our business, DRM, as a social enterprise, with 25% of our profits going into the community work that we do, from creating resources and hosting events, blogs and fundraisers to making direct donations to charities. We completed this event and run the business in honour of Ollie.”
Headteacher Blake Francis commented: "It was incredible to hear about Erin’s completing the ultra-event on the south coast, and it is even more incredible to see that over £11,000 has been raised for Mind over the last few years. Erin is a brilliant role model for our students, as she perfectly demonstrates how our school's core values, ‘ambition, respect, and care’, can be followed and can make a difference to others.”
Since 2022, Erin Anderson-Howe and her partner have raised over £11,500 for mental health charity ‘Coventry, Warwickshire & Worcestershire Mind’ through their business DRM. To find out more about recent fundraising events or to make a donation, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/wearedrm2022.
About AVS
The Avon Valley School and Performing Arts College is a popular and oversubscribed 11-16 school situated in Newbold, Rugby, which is led by Headteacher, Blake Francis. With 1100 students on roll, the school, which is judged ‘good’ by Ofsted, is housed in a state-of-the-art building that opened in 2007.
The school gained its Performing Arts Status in 2004, and prides itself on giving students the opportunity to perform and gain confidence through the arts; productions have included Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, Matilda, and Mary Poppins.