Help for Heroes: Donate to the Musa Qala Half-Marathon

Des Browne announced today that the government would be putting extra money into Headley Court, the Leatherhead-based unit where soldiers severely wounded in operations like Afghanistan and Iraq recuperate and learn to adapt to their disabilities. The charity Help for Heroes is raising a further £6m to put a swimming pool in the home. Readers of this blog will be aware of the chronic underfunding that has resulted in disabled soldiers receiving ridiculously small sums of money in compensation and led to the formation of Help for Heroes, which of course relies entirely on donations from members of the public. One interesting way of contributing to the charity is by supporting soldiers in Musa Qala in northern Helmand province who are planning a half-marathon around their helipad to raise money for Help for Heroes. Chris Howard, the soldier organising the event, says on his website: "The helicopter landing site is only 300m a lap and therefore, not only makes this event physically challenging but also extremely mentally challenging as well..  Despite the heat, dust physical and mental pain we are very proud to raise money for our friends who need our help.  Please dig deep and sponsor us online." You can do just that by going to the website here.