A have-a-go fundraiser is well on the way to completing a challenge to walk six million steps, 2,500 miles, in order to provide education for female refugees.

Jane Watts, of Frinton, is nine months into her year long sponsored challenge of six million steps, equating to seven miles a day.

Her Herculean efforts will fund education for Syrian refugee schoolgirls in Syria.

Jane hopes her efforts will raise £3,200 for Future Academy, a charity for which she is a trustee.

Whilst working as a freelance educational consultant, she also manages the charity's finances, newsletters, grants and oversees the curriculum development

The £3,200 she hopes to raise will contribute towards the annual cost of providing an education for a class of 16 girls.

She hopes to visit the camp next spring to meet the children and witness first-hand the effect the funds have had.

Jane has predominantly built up her footsteps whilst walking along the coast, from Frinton to Clacton or Walton.

To date, Jane has completed 5,294,248 steps, with another 705,473 remaining. She estimates her time-consuming efforts have culminated to more than 800 hours of walking.

On the difficulties she has faced, Jane said: “The main issue has been finding the time to fit it all in. Luckily the weather has been good and I haven’t been ill, but it has been challenging.

“If I've been away for a day, or I am unable to walk as much in a day, then the pressure falls onto the next day where I have to make up for it and do double.

“You can’t really have a day off.

"I started off doing more footsteps a day than I needed to do in order to build up a good cushion. I reckon I will finish the challenge with a month to spare.”

Future Academy was established by her son, Christopher, and Ahmad Al Jamal, a Palestinian refugee, and the first refugee to play professional football in the Lebanese premiership.

Future Academy provides an English school and football academy for more than 100 young children in two refugee camps in Beirut.

To donate to Janes cause, visit https://cafdonate.cafonline.org/18202