A year to the day after first running on Hampstead Heath, a charity volunteer ran and hiked a marathon around the famous green space in support of the Heath Hands charity.

Rebecca Smithson started running on the Heath on May 22 2019 as a way of “regaining control of her body” as a new mum, and a year later she’s smashed her £1,000 target for the much-loved Heath charity.

Rebecca, who is a creative director who spends her spare time volunteering for Heath Hands, said: “I was inspired when watching the Hackney Half Marathon last May, and being a new mum wanted to regain control of my body and find something that I could do for myself. I did my first run on the Heath and never looked back.”

A year on, she ran 26 miles in four hours 45 minutes and has so far raised more than £1,200 for the conservation charity.

To help, visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/rebecca-smithson