Veterans 'walking home for Christmas' will stop at Foulridge

Official launch of the campaign with ex-England footballer Wayne Bridge and actors George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman

The Walking With The Wounded charity group will face freezing temperatures and tough weather conditions as they start the journey on foot, trekking south from Gateshead on December 13th at 8am and will walk 10 to 12 hours per day aiming to arrive in Manchester on December 16th around 4pm.

The group will be departing from a stopover in Foulridge at 4am on Monday, December 16th at 4am, from where they will walk the final 31.2 miles to Manchester.

Chief executive Edward Parker and his team will be sleeping in an RV, which has been donated by Bardsea Leisure, Cumbria.

Mr Parker said: “This is a symbolic walk between the two Walking With The Wounded Hubs in the North of England. It presents a great opportunity to raise awareness of the vital work that we do, raise money to support those in need this Christmas and walk with some of the veterans who have been supported since the charity was founded 10 years ago.

"This is going to be quite a challenge and we’d love to see as many people as possible come out and support us on our route to Manchester!”

To donate to the walk, visit www.walkinghomeforchristmas.com/teams/the-greatnorth-walk.