Leading architect and Hathersage resident, Paul Holden, and his wife Gail are taking on the London Landmarks half-marathon in aid of the national Support Dogs charity.

They’ve set themselves a £2,500 target and are on track to smash their goal in honour of the charity, which is based in Sheffield and trains and provides assistance dogs to help autistic children and adults with epilepsy or a physical disability.

It’s a real collaborative effort as Paul is director of Peak Architects, which has been appointed to work on Support Dogs’ new national training centre of excellence and headquarters, on the site of a former warehouse and offices at Hillsborough.

Paul said: “Working with Support Dogs over the last few years has given us an insight into the incredible work that they do. Their vision for a new centre to treble its capacity and the lack of funding has given us the incentive to support their fundraising efforts to deliver this new facility."

Paul Holden holding his Support Dogs running vest, alongside trainee support dog Rowlings

The London Landmarks half-marathon takes place on Sunday, April 6 and takes in the City of Westminster and City of London, with runners passing iconic landmarks including Big Ben, Nelson’s Column, St Paul’s Cathedral and Tower Bridge.

Keen runner Paul, who has been gearing up his training ahead of the big day, has taken part for other charities over the past two years and is hoping to beat last year’s time.

Gail, who works as an accountant at Sheffield-based Chimp Management, took up running three years ago via the Couch to 5k challenge and will start the race in a separate group to Paul.

“It’s all about finishing, knowing that we will be raising money for such a great charity”, said Paul, who is dad to Abi, a 20-year-old civil engineering student at Cardiff University.

“There’ll be thousands of people on the streets, like a mini London Marathon, with 20,000 runners – it’s really enjoyable, with a great atmosphere.”

Rita Howson, chief executive at Support Dogs, said: “We’re extremely grateful for Paul and Gail’s dedication to Support Dogs, both professionally, in helping our new centre come to fruition, and personally in their commitment to taking on the London Landmarks half-marathon on our behalf.

“We wish them both the best of luck on the day and look forward to their continued, valued collaborative work with Support Dogs.”

Anyone wishing to sponsor Paul and Gail can do so by visiting www.justgiving.com and searching for Paul and Gail Holden.

To find out more about the work of Support Dogs, please visit www.supportdogs.org.uk or call 0114 2617800.

Hathersage architect building up to half-marathon in aid of Sheffield wonderdogs charity