A huge congratulations are in order for the five Winns staff who ran the Great North Run (GNR) to raise money for the Sunshine Fund.

Manny Thandi, Natalie Hall, Jordan Gill, Helen Johnson and Kayleigh Findlay, who are employees from across the Winn Group, took on the challenge as part of the Sunshine Run Team, and all finished with fantastic results.

Staff at Winns regularly raise funds for The Sunshine Fund, which helps to provide specialised equipment to children with disabilities in the North East of England.

We asked Helen, Jordan and Kayleigh to tell us more about their experience of the run…

Helen said;

“This was my first GNR. I loved it – I’d definitely do it again! The atmosphere at the start was great and the support from the spectators along the way was fantastic –they really made the race what it is.”

Kayleigh added;

“This was my second GNR – I previously ran it a few years ago. It was an amazing but emotional day, and I would recommend anyone that asked to take part. The best bits were crossing the Tyne Bridge, the finish line, and the atmosphere. I found mile 9 difficult – as you still feel like you have forever left, and a knee injury at mile three also slowed me down. I’ll definitely do it again, but next time I’ll do 100 per cent more training!

“The Sunshine Fund is an amazing charity that doesn’t get as much recognition as it should – without them so many children would miss out on essential and life changing equipment. It was fantastic to run for this great cause.”

Jordan said;

“I’ve done the GNR three times previously, so it was good to do another one! The first six miles were great, but the last six miles weren’t so great! I was glad to be running for the Sunshine Fund – they do some fantastic work, so it’s nice to be able to help them out. I definitely hope to take part in the run again in future."

Amy Thompson, Digital Marketing Manager added;

“The GNR is such a big event for the region that it’s great to be able to get involved and help to support such a great charity at the same time. The Sunshine Fund do amazing work that really makes a difference and we’re proud to be sponsoring their team for the third year in a row.”