A TEAM at Airedale Hospital's A&E department is putting its best foot forward for a cause close to its heart.

Colleagues are tackling a canal towpath trek to coin-in cash for the Emergency Department Appeal.

The £100,000 appeal was started in May to fund desperately-needed resources for the new hospital unit, which is due to open in the autumn.

Items on the 'wish list' range from cardiac monitors to a children's distraction wall, designed to keep youngsters occupied while they are awaiting assessment and treatment.

The walkers will set off from Skipton on July 23 and cover a 26-mile route, alongside the canal, to Leeds.

They will be joined for part of the way by family and friends.

The team aims to complete the challenge in a day and hopes to raise hundreds of pounds through sponsorship.

Among the walkers will be A&E staff nurse Jo Goodman, of Cowling.

She said: “We hope to start early so we can get some of the distance under our belts before it becomes too warm, if the weather is good.

"Although we all do quite a lot of walking in our spare time, no one has tackled anything like this before.”

To sponsor the walkers, text JORI 82 and the amount to 70070 or visit justgiving.com/owner-email/pleasesponsor/Jo-and-Rich-walk-28-miles-to-Leeds.