A KIND-HEARTED fundraiser put his best foot forward and collected nearly £1,000 for St Helena Hospice.

Manjit Sandhu walked more than 400 kilometres between October and December last year to support the hospice that looked after his brother, who sadly died in 2018.

Mr Sandhu, a director at Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery, in Stanway, said he wanted to give something back and was delighted to raise in excess of £900.

He said: "My brother's final days were in a hospice and it was a very comforting, peaceful place.

"They do so much wonderful work for our community and I wanted to give something back, so decided to walk 300km by the end of December.

"I ending up walking 400km-plus and raised over £900.

"I walked every day for an hour and found it enjoyable, albeit challenging at times when it was very cold.

"Overall, though, I'd be more than happy to do it again and I had plenty of support from everyone at Monkey Puzzle.

"Families, parents, the head office and my own family were brilliant and really helped me along the way."

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Brother Satnam sadly passed away in a hospice in Rochester, Kent, in 2018, aged 44.

He had lupus, which is a condition that affects the immune system.

Mr Sandhu, 41, completed his walking challenge near his home in Brentwood but wanted to raise money for the north Essex hospice because of his connection to Colchester.

He has been managing Monkey Puzzle, in Villa Road, since 2018.

"St Helena Hospice does an amazing job of supporting members of our community through their most difficult times," added Mr Sandhu.

"Covid-19 has had a massive impact on its fundraising efforts, with many events having to be cancelled."