Highfield and Brookham Schools brother and sister duo climb Ben Nevis for Young Minds​

Just before the second national lockdown, brother and sister Theo, age 10, and Tilda age 11, both pupils at Highfield and Brookham Schools took on an enormous challenge and climbed Ben Nevis to raise money for the charity Young Minds Trust. Last year Tilda decided she wanted to climb The Three Peaks to raise money for this fantastic charity and climbed Snowdon last October in an impressive 7 hours 20 minutes. Now her younger brother, Theo, has joined her quest.

The climbs have all been slightly delayed due to the pandemic, but Tilda and Theo were super keen to climb another mountain and continue to raise money for children’s mental health, particularly during these strange and turbulent times. Young Minds Trust is the UK’s leading charity fighting to ensure a better future for young minds. The charity is spearheading the fight for a future where all young minds are supported and empowered, whatever the challenges. Their aim is to make sure children and young people get the best possible mental health support and have the resilience to overcome life’s difficulties.

Camilla Kauntze, their mother said; “It was an amazing but difficult experience. Typically, Tilda and Theo were both racing around the next day, unlike their parents who spent at least a week hobbling around!”

Both Tilda and Theo each had their own ups and downs during the climb, but they persevered even for the last hour and a half through snow and awful visibility not to mention the odd wind gust and temperatures around -10. Ben Nevis is 1348m high and the climb itself is more difficult than Snowdon due to starting from sea level and climbing 7.5km up and down a steep gradient over moving stones and through thick fog at times.

Phillip Evitt, Headmaster at Highfield School said; “Tilda and Theo should be immensely proud of themselves. Not only is this a huge physical accomplishment but also an amazing achievement to raise a large amount of money for this fantastic charity.”

There is still time to sponsor Tilda and Theo and help them raise money for Young Minds Trust at justgiving.com/fundraising/matildakauntze. To find out more about Highfield and Brookham Schools and their ethos of ‘giving back’ visit highfieldandbrookham.co.uk.