A BASINGSTOKE mum and her partner will run a half marathon next weekend to raise funds for a deaf blind charity which helped her 11-year-old son.

Gemma Boys and Kevin Beacon, of Amazon Close, Kings Furlong, will be taking on the gruelling Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon on October 11, in a bid to raise £600 for leading deaf blind charity, SENSE.

The charity helped Gemma’s 11-year-old son, Thomas, who has a rare genetic syndrome called CHARGE syndrome, when he could not be assessed by local NHS professionals as his condition was rare and complex.

Thomas was born with a cleft lip, a cleft palate, malformed ears and facial palsy, meaning one eyelid does not work.

In addition, the 11-year-old is profoundly deaf, only has peripheral vision and has a sensory processing disorder.

Kevin, who is 36, also has two children - Jessica, 10, and four-year-old Jacob who also has a hearing impairment.

Gemma, who is a teaching assistant at Park View Infant School, said: “Thomas has been supported by Sense and their expertise since a young age, and I am so grateful to the charity.

“Myself and Kev really want to raise some money to help them support other families like ours, in the same way. We have attended family days and activities which enable us to meet other families and children affected by deafblindness, which is so good for us as well as Thomas.”

The 34-year-old added: “The Royal Parks Half is iconic due to its setting and we can’t wait to run through the Parks in central London and past some of London’s famous landmarks. We are hoping to run the half marathon in 2 hours 10 minutes.”

Sally Barney, events manager for the Royal Parks Foundation, said: “The Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon is a fundraising event for charities both large and small, as well as a fun day out in London’s magical parks for everyone who comes along to support the runners.”

As well as running in the half marathon next Sunday, Kevin will be running in the Basingstoke Half Marathon this Sunday and Gemma will be taking part in the Morrisons Great South Run in Portsmouth on October 25.

To donate to Gemma and Kevin’s fundraising appeal, visit http://m.virginmoneygiving.com/mt/uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action?userUrl=KevinandGemma&faId=580486&isTeam=true.