COLCHESTER’S mayor is set to walk 14 miles to raise cash for good causes.

Julie Young will take on the challenge along with her husband Tim Young, who is the Mayor’s Escort and Nigel Chapman, Conservative councillor for Rural North ward and also a former Mayor of Colchester.

The sponsored walk will be between Bures and Dedham and will take place on Sunday, September 18.

The walk was the brainchild of Mr Young, who is also Labour group leader on Colchester Council.

He said: “I was speaking to Nigel at the election count at Charter Hall in May and was commenting on just how large, geographically, his new ward of Rural North was.

“I asked him, jokingly, how long did he think it would take to walk it and he replied “Well, we should find out; how about doing a sponsored walk of its length for the Mayor’s Charities?”

“I think we both thought it was a bit crazy and wouldn’t happen, but we kept on about it and I mentioned it again at the lunch after the Mayor Making and it has just taken off.

“Julie loves the idea and is going to do the walk too, although she may leave her robe, hat and chains at the Town Hall!”

Mr Chapman is chairman of the Dedham Vale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Stour Valley Joint Advisory Committee.

He has planned the route of the walk with Simon Amstutz, the AONB manager.

The route will include a lunch stop at The Anchor in Nayland.

Councillors Young and Chapman are hoping that a number of other councillors and representatives from the charities and the Dedham AONB and Stour Valley Project will join them on the walk up, for to a maximum of 30.

The proceeds will be split between the Mayor’s Charities and the Stour Valley Trust.

The Mayor of Colchester’s charities for this year are: Beacon House; Open Road; Signpost; the Invicta Foundation, and the Rob George Foundation.

Anybody interested in doing the walk and to obtain further details should email: mayor@colchester.gov.uk.