Pink Ladies raise £25k for charity

A group of Marshland High School  runners have smashed their target and topped £25,000 of fundraising with their latest 5k challenge.

The Pink Ladies Hockey Squad took part in the special 5k Parkrun held in King’s Lynn earlier this month and had hoped to raise £2,000 to achieve their target. But the total came in at nearly £3,000 thanks to donations via a fundraising web page.

“I was so proud of all the runners and so many people in the community said such great things, not just about the squad, but the school and youth in general. They said things like ‘the school must be proud of its pupils as they are putting in so much effort,’” said Paul Swinburn, Head of PE at the school, a member of the West Norfolk Academies Trust.

He had also invited former members of the Pink Ladies to join this year’s group and there were a total of 32 runners and ten theatre members on the startline.

A lack of opportunity for keen girl hockey players, and having pupils play for town clubs or even at national league level,  prompted Mr Swinburn to create a Marshland High School squad. He found the funds to source the distinctive pink shirts more than 15 years ago and the team soon became known as the Pink Ladies.

“The kit looked like a dream and the amount of girls wanting to play increased dramatically,” he said. This year the Wisbech Lions have bought the squad a sponsored kit carrying on the pink tradition.

“We looked great in the new shirts and I reached out to potential sponsors to help us get the Skorts we need, as the ones we have are so old and in total disrepair,” he added.

The money from the Park run this year has all been raised to help the Angles Theatre in Wisbech, a venue close to the hearts of many pupils at the West Walton school.

This year was the eighth time the hockey squad has been raising money for charities which have also included food banks, Fenland Women’s Refuge, the theatre and to help pay for a rail card to help  a former squad member who was recovering from leukaemia to travel around Europe.

“This year I had over 50 girls turning out at regular after school clubs, with many of those going on to play for school and even local clubs,” added Mr Swinburn.

Hockey players, both boys and girls, from the school help populate clubs including the Pelicans in King’s Lynn, Wisbech Town and Long Sutton. The under-15 mixed team are the district champions and the under-16 girls are county champions within the state school sector.

“The run was epic. I was so proud of all the runners and there was a huge buzz as we arrived.”