AN ILKLEY woman is to take on the Yorkshire Three Peaks carrying ten litres of water to highlight difficulties faced by people who live without access to water and sanitation.

Alison Peel also hopes to raise £800 for the charity Raleigh International by completing the 25-mile challenge over Whernside, Ingleborough and Pen-y-ghent on Sunday.

Alison, who has a history of volunteering in the local community, wants to highlight the difficulties faced by people without access to water and sanitation facilities that people take for granted in the UK.

She is travelling to Tanzania to volunteer with the charity from June 1 until December, where she will be delivering water, sanitation and hygiene projects in a poor rural community. She hopes to raise £800 before she goes.

Alison said: "There is a desperate need for this kind of work – almost half of Tanzania's population lack access to safe water facilities.

"Water, sanitation and hygiene are essential for breaking the cycle of poverty and disease. The need to walk long distances to collect water and the disease brought by poor sanitation and hygiene often prevent women and children from attending work and school, thus preventing the improvement of livelihoods and escape from poverty.

"My volunteering placement is part of the International Citizen Service (ICS) programme – a UK government-funded programme that provides an opportunity for volunteers like me to help some of the poorest people in the world and learn valuable skills at the same time. The programme is specifically designed to get young people from the UK and developing countries together to tackle poverty and its causes.

"I want to raise £800 for this cause before leaving for Tanzania, and have chosen to complete my challenge as a way to achieve this. I've already raised more than half of my target total already, but I'd really appreciate any donations, however small, that Ilkley Gazette and Wharfedale Observer readers can make."

Alison added: "When I come back from Tanzania, I'll continue on the ICS programme, raising awareness of my project and the opportunities for young people to volunteer overseas in the local community."

You can donate online at the justgiving.com/Alison-Peel-ICS web page.

lWhat do you think? We welcome letters on this or any other subject. E-mail richard.parker@nqyne.co.uk or write to the Content Editor, Ilkley Gazette and Wharfedale Observer, 38 High Street, Skipton BD23 1JU. Please include your full name, address and daytime telephone number.