27 workers from the Vodafone office in Beacon Hill Office Park, Cafferata Way, Newark, will walk from Lincoln Central Station to Newark Castle to raise funds for Beaumond House Hospice Care

More than two dozen members of a Newark office team will be donning their walking shoes for a charity that provides supportive palliative care.

Members of the Vodafone office team are set to walk 17.5 miles from Lincoln Central Station to Newark Castle to raise funds for Beaumond House Hospice Care this Wednesday (May 14).

The team of 27, based at Beacon Hill Office Park on Cafferata Way, , will meet at the train station at 9.30am and set off, with a support car and photographers, down Lincoln’s high street, along Newark Road to the Witham St Hughes roundabout before going past Swinderby, Collingham, and Winthorpe, ending at the grounds of Newark Castle.

It costs Beaumond House around £2.2 million to deliver their services every year and around £1.6 million of this must be raised through donations, shops, and local businesses.

Natalie Butler, Vodafone’s charity lead at the Newark site, said: “For me it is vital that we as a town support them [Beaumond House].

“They have a reputation as 'end of life for cancer patients' but they do so much more than that, and they support end of life for any illness, palliative care and support for families and friends, all at no cost.

“Without the support of local people and fundraising, they wouldn’t be able to exist.”

Carl Johnson-Gash, the design and experience operations lead, came up with the idea, which was supported by the team.

He said he was “really pleased and humbled” by people’s generosity, as he has been keeping a close eye on donations as they grow.

He added: “Times are hard and the world is bleak, but still people give what they can, and it’s beautiful to see.

“When I put messages out to the team, everyone was really surprised that we have raised this much.

“We had to get a new totaliser in the office again, now we have gone over £1,000.”