Boy, 11, walks 51 miles around Northampton in memory of his grandad and raises over £1,000 for Comic Relief

An 11-year-old boy walked 51 miles around the perimeter of Northampton in memory of his grandad, who passed away at the beginning of this year.

While many children may have been using their half term to unwind from school, 11-year-old Joshua Myring, from Kislingbury, used his break to tackle the Northampton Round walk in memory of his dearly departed grandad to raise money for Comic Relief.

Joshua said: "I decided to take on the 51-mile Northampton Round by the Ten Foot Walking Club. I completed the walk in the week of half term for Comic Relief and in loving memory of my grandad who passed away suddenly in January 2022.

"His favourite thing to pass time was to be out in the fresh air walking every day so I could not think of a better way to do something in his memory."

Joshua - along with his mother, Rachael Myring, 35, and father, Luke Myring, 38 - kickstarted the 51 mile trek, at Bugbrooke on Sunday, February 13 before gradually making their way through the picturesque villages and parks bordering Northampton throughout the half term including Nobottle, Brixworth Country Park, Yardley Hastings and Sywell Country Park.

Even Joshua's younger brother, Oscar, 4, was able to join in on the days where they mapped out shorter legs of the route.

Taking on the colossal trail is a big enough challenge for an 11-year-old but he additionally endured, not one, but two storms on his travels.

Joshua continued: "At times, I found this walk incredibly challenging: walking through mud baths, high winds and even Storms Eunice and Franklin. But I persevered through whatever weather would await me and my family walking team.

"And finally, the amount of support everyone has given me was phenomenal, raising more than £1,000 so far in just a week."

Joshua researched and arranged the walk on his own because he wanted to do something in memory of his grandad, Stephen Myring, who lived in Leicestershire and loved to go walking at Bradgate Park twice a day. He passed away suddenly in January 2022 at the age of 64.

Joshua's initial goal was to raise £100 for Comic Relief but donations came pouring in once the community caught wind of his efforts and now he had raised more than £1,000.

Joshua's father, Luke, said: "I gave him a big hug and told him how proud I am of him. It is a massive thing him saying he wanted to do it and then actually doing it. We were up at 6am walking to beat the weather and for him to do that is quite astonishing really.

"I am absolutely incredibly proud of him. I kept saying to him as we were walking that grandad would be incredibly proud of him.

"My dad, he idolised his grandkids and idolised Josh so nothing would have surprised him because he had so much faith in them."

You can make a donation to Joshua's Just Giving page here.