A bobby from Chelmsford will be swapping his police boots for hiking boots when he tackles one of the world's most impressive mountains.

PC Paul Ford is in training to climb Mount Kenya to raise money for Chelmsford's Farleigh Hospice and the NSPCC Full Stop campaign.

The 23-year-old policeman, who is based in Wickford, will be joined by friend Richard White for the gruelling climb which they have organised themselves.

They fly to Kenya on March 2 for the two-week trip to the 5,000-metres high mountain.

Training has been a bit of a problem for the pair, who are both members of the Territorial Army.

"We know that this is going to be extremely hard. We have been training, but you are fairly limited as to where you can practise in the UK. We have been climbing Snowdon, but Mount Kenya is five times as high as that."

Before they even set off, Paul has to tackle an equally difficult challenge - meeting the cost of the equipment and raising plenty of sponsorship money.

"The equipment we need is pretty expensive," said Paul. "We are hoping that local businesses might be able to help us out."

The NSPCC's Full Stop campaign aims to stamp out child abuse, while the cash raised for Farleigh Hospice will go into the general fund.

"Of course we also need plenty of sponsor money so that we can raise as much as possible for the charities."

Sponsors can call Paul on 01268 561312 or Richard on 01608 650502.

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