All money donated towards Tim’s 1,000 Mile Challenge will be split evenly between the charities AKT (previously known as the Anthony Kennedy Trust) and Diabetes UK. You can donate over at Virgin Money Giving.
Find out more about the challenge here.
AKT
AKT is a charity I’ve supported for several years, which works with LGBTQ+ young people who are homeless or living in hostile environments. It helps them into safe homes and employment, education or training. It does so in a welcoming and open environment that celebrates LGBTQ+ identities. Despite the progress made on LGBTQ+ rights in the last few decades, it’s still true that 24% of homeless young people identify as LGBTQ+ – a massive over-representation compared to the general population. 77% of those young people say coming out at home was the main reason they became homeless. Few charities consider the particular difficulties young LGBTQ+ homeless people face, which makes the work of AKT all the more important.
Diabetes UK
Both my sister and mother have diabetes (one Type 1 and the other Type 2), so it’s a cause that resonates for me. There have been some major breakthroughs in the last few decades both in terms of helping people who are diabetic and in public understanding, but there’s still a huge amount to do. Diabetes UK does amazing work helping combat one of the fastest growing diseases in the UK. That includes campaigning for better understanding, as well as funding research to help prevent diabetes related amputation, sight loss and other issues, as well as looking for a cure.
Note: Neither AKT nor Diabetes UK is directly involved with this challenge and therefore bear no responsibility for anything involved with it.