Inspiring seven-year-old Northamptonshire boy raises over £1,000 for homeless charity with 100km cycle

Albie Emms, from Brackley, has raised £1,010 for the Northampton Hope Centre by completing the epic cycling challenge.

The seven-year-old started cycling 5km routes around Brackley in November and hit the 100km milestone on Tuesday (February 17).

Albie who has always had an interest in helping the homeless was inspired to take on the challenge after watching Paddy McGuinness’ Ultra Endurance Cycle Challenge last year.

Albie’s mum Katy said: “Ever since Albie was little he has always asked about homeless people in the street and always wanted to help them.

“So together we decided to raise money for the Hope Centre charity in Northampton, which helps homeless people.”

Katy who is training for a half marathon ran alongside Albie on his routes around Brackley.

She said: “We wanted it to be a challenge but still achievable for Albie as his muscles are still developing and he is only seven years old.

“So we aimed to complete 5km on most weekends and the school holidays over the Christmas period.”

Katy says that at first, some of the hills around Brackley proved quite a challenge for Albie but towards the end his fitness had improved by leaps and bounds.

She said: “At the start he kept stopping and starting but by the end of it, I was having to tell him to stop because his fitness improved so much, I couldn’t keep up.”

Initially, Albie and his family set a fundraising goal of £250 but over the past weeks, they have more than quadrupled that target.

Albie will visit the Northampton Hope Centre this Friday (February 21) to meet staff members and find out what the money he raised will be spent on.

Katy added: “I’m really proud of Albie. It’s so nice that he thinks of other people and has empathy for those less fortunate.

“He has also shown great perseverance and determination to complete the challenge even in the cold and miserable weather.

“There were many times he could have stayed inside watching television or films but he knew he had to get it done and that’s what he did!”

Katy also thanks all of Albie’s around Brackley supporters and all of those who helped him reach his fundraising goal.

She said: “Albie only set out to raise £250, which would have been amazing but to raise over £1,000 is absolutely amazing, people have been so generous.

“For a young boy to have achieved all of this, it is amazing. It would be really lovely if he could inspire other young people to take on their own challenges, whether those challenges are tiny or big.

“In the world we are living in at the moment there is a lot of unkindness and conflict, it would be nice to encourage the younger generation to start thinking about helping and caring for others.”

For more information about Albie’s cycling challenge or to donate to his fundraising page, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/page/albiecycles.