A FUNDRAISER is braced to face the elements next month as she takes on two marathons in two days in one of Europe’s most unforgiving environments.

Hannington-based runner Sarah Cotton is aiming to complete more than 50 miles of running when she travels across the wild southern Icelandic mountains.

The 46-year-old, who decided to take up running for the first time seven years ago, has never run outside the UK and is looking to raise vital funds for The Queen Mother’s Clothing Guild (QMCG) – a charity that raises money to buy clothing and household linens before distributes them to other organisations and charities.

Working with the QMCG for almost nine years, Sarah understands the importance of fundraising for the charity.

“It’s a charity that some people aren’t actually aware of,” Sarah said.

“But what we do is really important because we aren’t raising money for just one charity – we’re actually raising money for something more like 70.

“We receive lists from the charities who tell us what items they need and we raise money to buy them. 

“Each year we meet at St James Palace and turn it into a warehouse full of products that are handed out to them and it’s all done voluntarily so people know that every penny raised will always go back into it.”

Sarah takes to Iceland during next month’s Bank Holiday Weekend and has raised more than £1,000 so far.

After deciding to start running, she began taking on tougher and tougher events every year, such as running 30 miles a day over three days between Oxford and London, to support the charity.

“I thought that I did all this running and that I should try and raise some money for charity whilst doing it – and it also means I get a weekend away from the children,” Sarah joked.

“Running in Iceland is going to be a completely new experience with amazing terrain but I am under no illusions about how cold it will be.”

To support Sarah you can donate on her Virgin Money Giving page and for more information on the charity visit qmcg.org.uk.