A husband and wife are taking on the London Marathon together in memory of their ones who sadly died at a hospice in Little Hulton.

Belinda and Stephen Neild from near Swinton have been involved in fundraising for St Ann’s Hospice ever since Belinda lost her mum Joyce Bolton in 2011.

She then continued to raise money in memory of her mum’s siblings too.

Belinda’s mum was a patient at the hospice and died there in 2011.

Stephen’s dad Kevin Neild was also a patient at the hospice, with both Belinda and Stephen, saying the St Ann’s staff were amazing.

This year the husband-and-wife team are running the marathon in memory of Stephen's brother Alan Sidlow and Belinda's auntie Bernadette Bancroft.

Both thought highly of St Ann’s and donated to every challenge the couple has completed to raise money for the charity.

Belinda said: “We’ve never stopped fundraising since 2011, I never expected we’d still be raising so much money but everyone around us knows how important St Ann’s Hospice is to our family.

“We know all of our loved ones that had a connection to the hospice would be so proud, it really is a charity close to our hearts.”

Belinda hit an incredible milestone last year after raising more than £20,000 for the hospice and the duo are hoping to add to this next week.

She has run more than 10 marathons, many of which have been in costumes such as a Rubik cube, Forrest Gump, and a sumo wrestler, as well as completing a triple marathon challenge.

Completing a marathon is a great achievement in itself, but Belinda also has two Guinness World Records for running the fastest time, dressed as an item of stationery – a red crayon first, then as a pencil.

Fundraising manager at the hospice, Lucy Leeming, added: “We are so grateful that Belinda and Stephen have raised such an incredible amount of money for us over the last twelve years.

“It means the world to us that supporters like Belinda and Stephen dedicate so much of their time to supporting us and raising awareness of our services.

“We are excited to see Team Neild cross the finish line next Sunday.”

Fundraisers like Belinda and Stephen are the reason the hospice is able to provide the excellent care they can to so many people.

They said: “Training is not going to be easy but with hard work and determination we will both cross the finishing line and hopefully raise as much money as we can for the hospice.”

St Ann’s provide important care and services to patients across Greater Manchester who have life-limiting illnesses and support their family and friends in their time of need.

To help the couple on their fundraising journey, click here (www.justgiving.com/fundraising/belinda-neild7).

If you have a story and something you would like to highlight in the community, please email me at jasmine.jackson@newsquest.co.uk or DM me on Twitter @JournoJasmine.