Steve Brown, director of Brown & Carroll with Fun Walk trustees. L-R: Sandra Bastow, Sylvia Kent, John Baron MP, Steve Brown and Christine Brewster.

At a visit to long-term Fun Walk Trust sponsor Brown and Carroll’s office in Basildon last week, the Fun Walk Trustees John Baron MP, Sylvia Kent, Christine Brewster and Sandra Bastow were able to share the great news that pledges from local businesses to the 2024 Bonus pot have now exceeded £30,000 and to thank Brown & Carroll for their donation this year and in preceding years.

John Baron said:

“On behalf of the trustees and team, I would like to convey a personal thank you to Brown and Carroll, and to all the other sponsors that have pledged a donation to the 2024 Fun Walk Bonus Pot. They include Greater Anglia, Butyl Products Group, Tunnelcraft, IFE Global Logistics, Swan Housing Group, RIS Group,  Mr Barrie Stone and others. The Bonus pot now exceeds £30,000 and this will be distributed on a pro rata basis to all this year’s participating organisations.”

“We continue to encourage good causes to register for the September Fun Walk, please come and join us to raise money for your community projects. For more information, please visit the Fun Walk website: www.thefunwalktrust.co.uk.

In welcoming the Fun Walk Trustees, Steve Brown, co-founder and Director at Brown and Carroll, said:

“We have been supporting the Fun Walk since 2018 as this is a great way of providing important funding to many local good causes. It also aligns really well with our Social Impact objectives. We wish all participants well and look forward to hearing of the total monies raised.”

This year the sponsored walks can happen anytime during September and at any location chosen by the registered charity or local community group. With the generous support of local businesses, the Trust tops up the sponsorship money raised by each group on a pro-rata basis, which last year equated to a 40% bonus over and above the amount each organisation raised themselves.

About the Fun Walk:

John Baron MP and his team started the Fun Walk in 2002 to commemorate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee and raised £6,000 for six charities and projects. The event became an annual one and continues to grow.

To assist with its growth, in 2013 the Fun Walk became a registered Charity and it is now officially known as The Fun Walk Trust (Registered Charity number: 1151626). In 2019 Basildon Billericay and Wickford CVS was appointed to administer the event on behalf of the Trustees.

John continues his role with the charity as Chair of the Trustees and by soliciting support and sponsorship from local businesses. The BONUS POT is a unique feature of the event, into which local businesses and individuals kindly donate and which is then distributed to participating organisations on a pro rata basis in addition to the monies they themselves raise in sponsorship.

The 2023 event raised over £85,000 for local charities and community groups, and brought the total money raised since the Fun Walk’s inception to £1,535,000.

The Fun Walk Trust organises the walk and takes care of the paperwork, leaving the projects free to focus on raising sponsorship money and enjoying the event. The event is not confined to charities: any good cause or project may join us once approved by the Trust. For example, many pre-schools and schools, churches and community groups now regularly participate.

In 2020, given the challenges presented by COVID-19 and the recognition that our local charities and good causes needed our help more than ever, the decision was made to switch to a virtual format, allowing supporters to walk the distance anytime during the selected month. This proved to be very successful and will be continued for the foreseeable future.