Liverpool fundraising legend ‘Speedo Mick’ has officially completed his final charity challenge by walking all the way from John O’Groat’s in Scotland to Land’s End in Cornwall.
The famous fundraiser, who became a household name for swimming the English Channel in 2014 and numerous other impressive feats over the last decade, finished his 1,000-mile walk on Saturday, 29 April, summiting the likes of Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis in all manner of conditions on his way.
Real name Michael Cullen, Speedo Mick gained the amusingly modest moniker for carrying out all of his charity efforts in nothing but a tight pair of swimming trunks, but make no mistake, there is nothing modest about the things this man has achieved.
Arriving in Land’s End this weekend following his epic four-month trek to walk the length of the UK, the proud Scouser and lifelong Everton fan (hence the choice of shorts) shared a resouding message of relief and gratitude on social media, confirming his journey had finally come to an end.
I can't believe the journey is over but I am mighty relieved that it is. I have been running on fumes adrenaline beeps and pasties for 3 weeks.
As if this individual feast wasn’t enough, when totting up all of his other fundraising efforts throughout the past 10 years, Speedo Mick has raised more than £1 million for charity, including over £220,000 for mental health organisations not just around the North West but the UK and Ireland at large.
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Mick began his remarkable voyage after he began struggling with his own mental health some time ago, with his last walk seeing him cover more than 2,500 miles and raising £200k in one go. Utterly immense.
As explained in the description on his fundraising page, the 58-year-old has raised a ridiculous amount for various important causes, including mental health, food drives, disadvantaged young people and homelessness — all of which factored into The SpeedoMike Foundation, which he set up in June 2020.
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Speaking to BBC Breakfast on the day he reached Land’s End, the mighty Speedo Mick explained how motivation came from nothing else other than wanting to give back, explaining how he “needed that support myself a long time ago and [has] never looked back since.”
For nine years, Speedo Mick has crossed the length and breadth of the UK wearing little more than a pair of blue swimming trunks to raise £1m.
Speedo Mick has put in some serious graft over the past seven years, in particular, raising truly life-saving sums to combat mental health and suicide prevention, but as he explained when he began this walk (in freezing cold December, no less), he will now “be hanging up my Blue knickers for ever more.”
Joking that he’s “no spring chicken”, his first words after reaching his final destination were: “I’m freezing cold, but I’m excited to see all of my family. I just want to see my own bed and to have some beans on toast.” We’d say he’s earned it, wouldn’t you?
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You can donate to his GoFundMe HERE and help him take his amazing tally even further.
You’re an absolute inspiration, Mick, now have a good old rest and enjoy that beans on toast.
Government aims to ‘turn the tide’ on homelessness with £1 billion funding boost
Emily Sergeant
Nearly £1 billion of funding is being pumped into Council budgets to help “break the cycle of spiralling homelessness” in 2025.
As part of the Government‘s wider ‘Plan For Change’, and in a bid to help tackle, reduce, and prevent homelessness next year, it’s been announced that more resources will be be made available for workers on the frontline who provide essential services to get rough sleepers off the street and into secure housing.
This significant investment means Councils will now be “better equipped” to step in early and stop households from becoming homeless in the first place.
According to the Government’s plans, these funded measures will include mediation with landlords or families to prevent evictions, helping homeless people find new homes, and providing deposits to access private renting.
This government is determined to tackle, reduce and prevent homelessness.
— Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Gov (@mhclg) December 18, 2024
The funding will also be used to address the growing use of B&Bs and nightly-let accommodation, and the streamlining of funding structures to make it easier for Councils to spend their cash.
Areas across the UK can also choose to channel resources into services such as Housing First.
Housing First has been massively successful in Greater Manchester, and has helped house hundreds of our region’s rough sleepers since it was first piloted, being described as “life-changing” along the way.
More than £633 million of the funding will be allocated for the Homelessness Prevention Grant – which is a £192 million increase from this year – while £185.6 million will go to the Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant, more than £37 million to the Rough Sleeping Accommodation Programme, and £5 million will be for the Emergency Accommodation Reduction Pilots.
This new £1 billion funding boost comes after it was announced back in September that Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions will be abolished in England next year as part of the landmark Renters’ Rights Bill.
It will also look to support the Government’s ambition to deliver the biggest increase in social and affordable housing in a generation – with an extra £500 million ploughed into the Affordable Homes Programme to build tens of thousands of affordable homes across the country.
Featured Image – Gary Knight (via Flickr)
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Avanti West Coast staff set to strike on major days over festive period
Emily Sergeant
Avanti West Coast staff are set to strike on some major days over the festive period, it has been announced.
Train managers who are members of the RMT Union will stage industrial action on New Year’s Eve and 2 January 2025 after “overwhelmingly rejecting” the train company’s “inadequate proposals” on rest day working arrangements.
On top of this, strikes will also go ahead on Sundays between 12 January and 25 May too.
According to the union, up to 400 members are involved in the dispute with Avanti, and 83% of those voted against a suggested deal.
Strikes were previously planned for 22, 23, and 29 December as well, but they were suspended last week after a suggested agreement was put to a referendum of RMT members.
Avanti West Coast staff are set to strike on several major days over the festive period / Credit: Avanti West Coast
“Our members have resoundingly rejected Avanti’s latest offers in two referendums,” explained an RMT spokesperson. “Sustained strike action is now the only way to focus management’s minds on reaching a negotiated settlement with the union.”
In case you weren’t familiar, Avanti’s West Coast Main Line operates six routes along the west of the UK, including from London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly, as well as services from London to other major cities such as to Blackpool, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Holyhead, Wrexham, and Liverpool.
Avanti has warned its customers that the strikes will likely cause “significant disruption” on the West Coast Main Line.
The train operator took to X to assure that its plans will be confirmed “as soon as possible”.
The RMT union has announced strike action affecting Avanti West Coast on 31 December and 2 January, along with all Sundays from 12 January to 25 May 2025. We’re looking at how this industrial action will impact our services and we’ll confirm our plans as soon as possible.
“The RMT union has announced strike action affecting Avanti West Coast on 31 December and 2 January, along with all Sundays from 12 January to 25 May 2025,” the statement reads on X.
“We’re looking at how this industrial action will impact our services and we’ll confirm our plans as soon as possible.”
An Avanti West Coast spokesperson also added in response to the industrial action being called yesterday: “We’re disappointed our train managers who are RMT members have voted to decline the very reasonable, revised offer made to them to resolve the rest day working dispute and avoid inconveniencing our customers.
Danny Jones -
1st May 2023 
