An Ashwellthorpe father has raised more than £5,500 for a campaign to build a new hospice for children with life-threatening illnesses.

Richard Plume, of The Street, biked from John O'Groats to Land's End over the course of 12 days in aid of East Anglia's Children's Hospices (EACH) nook appeal, which aims to raise £10m for a new hospice.

Despite never having taken part in a sporting event, Mr Plume decided that, nearing 50, he would take up cycling and trained over the course of the summer.

Covering up to 100 miles a day - accompanied by just his sat-nav - Mr Plume crossed the finish line on Friday, August 14.

Mr Plume, who is the managing director of Gale Construction, said: 'I am so fortunate to have a healthy child and I cannot imagine the pain and distress that the parents of the children cared for by EACH have to endure so I wanted to give something back.

'I needed to prove to myself that I really could achieve such a task and it made it so worthwhile to fundraise at the same time.'

He said that he felt the ride went according to plan, with daily distance targets hit and overnight stops managed, but said that it was 'immensely tiring and mentally very draining'.

A diagnosis of congenital dysplasia of the hip when he was young meant Mr Plume had a full hip replacement in 2007, which his doctor said proved 'anything is possible'.

Now, with just a few cuts and bruises from the ride left, the father of eight-year-old Eleanor is now holding a party at the Bird in Hand pub in Wreningham on Saturday, August 29 to thank his sponsors.

The self-funded challenge came during the family's two-week summer holiday so the maximum amount of money could be donated straight to EACH.

There's still time to donate - visit Mr Plume's online sponsorship page at www.justgiving.com/Richard-Plume

EACH supports children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

Their nook appeal would see the new facility built on a five-acre site in Framingham Earl, just outside of Norwich.

Do you know of someone in Ashwellthorpe taking on a charity fundraiser? Email lauren.cope@archant.co.uk