A SOUTH Petherton man running 47 half marathons in as many days during Lent is looking forward to putting his feet up at Easter.

Stephen Carp was inspired to take on the challenge by his five-year-old daughter Kya-Onawa, who was recently diagnosed with a severe speech disorder.

He hopes to raise £750 for the I CAN children's communication charity.

Stephen said: "I am running half a marathon every day as I have a daughter that has a severe speech disorder.

"I am a real running fanatic. I have been running every day since December 28, 2019, a current streak of 834 days.

"My previous average is eight miles a day, but for Lent I wanted to make it more of a challenge, so I am attempting a half marathon distance every day between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday, making 47 half marathons in total.

"During the pandemic, my family and I became concerned that because of all the lockdowns, our daughter, Kya-Onawa, may fall further behind with her speaking and understanding.

"This was a worrying experience for our family.

"Fortunately, we found out about I CAN, who provided us with lots of useful information and support.

"As a thank you, I want to highlight the great work they do and that is why I am running a half marathon every day.”

Carol Payne, interim chief executive of I CAN said: "It is a truly remarkable feat that Stephen is undertaking in aid of I CAN.

"Throughout the UK, children’s education has been severely disrupted by Covid and the lockdowns.

"They have lost months of being in school and have missed out on daily chances to interact with their friends and family and the wider outside world.

"We are now beginning to see the true impact this has had on their ability to communicate.

"The Covid generation need us to defend their future and we are incredibly grateful to Stephen for all he is doing to help ensure that we all speak up to so that children’s voices are heard.”

To sponsor Stephen, visit /www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ican-stephen-carp