Are you up for the challenge? Chariots of Fire 2025
April 15, 2025
The city’s Chariots of Fire annual race event has chosen its partner charity for 2025, and now they’d like your help on the day as they raise funds to transform the lives of families caring for seriously ill children across this county
A very special band of nurses is looking for a very special kind of corporate support in Cambridge this summer.
If you haven’t heard of Roald Dahl Nurses before, that’s about to change. These specialist nurses who deliver care to children living with some of the most complex lifelong conditions are coming to the city this summer as the charity behind them – Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity – are the chosen partner for Cambridge’s annual Chariots of Fire event on September 21.
And, as we race into spring and summer, they want to enlist scores of volunteers (from course marshals to a meet-and-greet team in the event village) to help support this fabulous, fundraising fun day.
There are currently over 150 Roald Dahl Nurses based in NHS Trusts, over 20 of them in Cambridgeshire and the East of England. Together they care for over 36,000 children across the UK, but the charity says too many families still don’t have access to this bespoke, transformational care.
“The nurses are recruited for their skills, specialism and experience and also for their ability to walk a complicated and challenging road with families in a compassionate way. They offer families support (in and out of hospital) through the most challenging of times, advocating and championing their children,” explains the charity’s CEO Louise Griew. “We are so excited about this event and the vital funds we will raise to extend the work we do here for families across Cambridge and the surrounding areas.”
The race involves hundreds of runners who form relay teams completing a 3k loop starting and finishing on the Queen’s Green and is organised by HCR Hewitsons who founded the event back in 1991. It’s delivered in partnership with RunThrough and supported by Cambridge City Council.
Scores of runners have already signed up and there’s still 26 weeks to go. But that leaves Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity with 26 weeks to find local companies who’d like to build a fabulous fun day into their corporate charity calendar and make a world of difference to the day’s legacy for children in this region.
You can hear from just one family – just down the road in Ipswich – whose story tells the power of these nurses better than we can. And to sign up email events@roalddahlcharity.org to meet with the charity’s project lead for a no-obligation chat to find out more.
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3 things to know about Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity
- It earned this marvellous name after being launched in memory of the writer Roald Dahl by his widow Felicity, supported by his illustrator Sir Quentin Blake. They both remain as Co-Presidents of the charity today.
- Their Royal Patron is Her Majesty the Queen and celebrity Patrons include Dame Joanna Lumley, Dame Julie Walters and Tim Minchin. Corporate partners include Portman Estates, Stagecoach and Cytiva.
- Their vision is that every seriously ill child has a Roald Dahl Nurse Specialist to help them lead a more marvellous life. Visit www.roalddahlcharity.org to find out more.
Read more or become a volunteer at the Chariots of Fire – Chariots of Fire 2025 Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity chosen as charity partner for Chariots of Fire Relay Race 2025