Higham Ferrers teenager walks a million steps to raise money for Childline

A teenager from Higham Ferrers walked one million steps to raise money for the NSPCC's Childline.

Alfie Brown, 13, is a Northampton Town FC fan and normally plays a lot of football, so when games were cancelled he decided to set himself the challenge of walking a million steps before his birthday in September.

Alfie started on May 11 and managed to complete the challenge two days before his 13th birthday. He covered 500 miles in one million steps and raised a fantastic £300 for Childline.

His nan, Karen, and her dog joined Alfie for some of his steps. She said: "When Alfie said he wanted to walk a million steps, neither of us realised just how far it was.

"We typically walked 9,000 steps a day, including routes along the River Nene.

"It was tough at times but his motivation and determinatin to reach his goal kept us going through to the end."

Another benefit of the walks was that Alfie had space to discuss any concerns about coronavirus with his nan, particularly at the beginning of lockdown.

Karen said: "The walks gave him time to talk about any worries he had, especially as schools closed and he couldn't see his friends.

"Knowing he had set a goal gave him, and me, something to focus on during a time of uncertainty."

Childline has seen how the pandemic has affected other young people and more than 22,000 children and teenagers reached out for support during lockdown.

Barbara Elsey, community fundraising manager at the NSPCC, said: "We're so pleased that Alfie has completed his one million step fundraising challenge for Childline, it's been fantastic to see his progress over the last 16 weeks.

"The money he's raised will help us to continue supporting children and young people through free, confidential counselling and he should be incredibly proud of his efforts."

The NSPCC relies on support to provide Childline and counselling to children. You can find out more and support the service here.

Alfie's nan Karen said: "I know Alfie is proud to have completed his million step goal. I hope it helps him realise he can do whatever he wants in life when he puts his mind to it."

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