A TEAM of Winchester parents are planning to complete a 100 mile charity bike ride in aid of a local school.

The 25 cyclists will start in London and finish in Winchester on May 18, hoping to raise £10,000 for Western Primary in Fulflood.

Co-organiser Nick Joynes, who runs The Natural Travel Collection in Alresford, said the funds will cover the final amount needed to install an all-weather athletics track this summer.

He said: “We are calling it the ‘West-to-West’, because the route we think we’ll take will start at Westminster Abbey and finish at the school.

“We all hope to raise £250 minimum each. Everyone is working hard and we train every fortnight. So far, we are up to about 50 miles per practice, so it’s definitely getting there.”

The school already have £30,000 to spend on the track and the final £10,000 will complete costs.

Headteacher Peter Burbridge said: “Western’s Golden Mile Track will be approximately 400m long and one and a half metres wide, allowing children to walk or run in pairs.

“The track will follow a winding route around the edge of our school field, through a wooded area and across grass; resulting in four laps of this track making a Golden Mile. All of our children and staff will use the track regularly with significant health benefits being created for the whole school community.”

Nick developed the idea with Andy Lean and Matt Cobbold, who both have children in Year 5 with Nick’s twins, Hannah and Sophia.

He added: “This parent network is what’s helped the whole thing along, and it’s brilliant that we have got so many people on board. We have lots of dads, and two mums that are interested.

“It’s a passion of ours and we are all very committed to provide the children with something that will help a healthy exercise culture at Western.”

Several businesses have agreed to sponsor the cycle: B Lunn Architects; Happy Hot Tubs; Marshall Volkswagen; Southampton Airport; St Cross Builders.