Rochdale woman to tackle Yorkshire Three Peaks for anti-slavery charity

Amanda Houghton, who lives in Rochdale, is tackling the Sofa to Summit challenge for City Hearts

A Rochdale woman who works with survivors of modern slavery is taking on the City Hearts annual Sofa to Summit challenge.

Amanda Houghton works for the City Hearts anti-slavery charity, which runs safe houses across Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Sunderland and Yorkshire, for people rescued from modern slavery situations such as forced labour, forced sexual labour, forced criminal activity, and domestic servitude, as well as supporting people in outreach and long-term support programmes.

She is taking part in the charity’s annual Sofa to Summit fundraiser, which asks supporters to cover 25 miles of Yorkshire Three Peaks in person, or virtually.

Amanda says she loves walking, and is looking forward to trekking across the peaks of Pen-y-Ghent, Ingleborough and Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales, planned for Saturday 9 July.

“I love walking and do it as much as I can,” she said. “I will go for hikes as much as possible in the lead up to Sofa to Summit in order to prepare, and I’m planning to do Snowdon soon.

“We’re raising money for the City Hearts’ Integration Support Department, which helps survivors of modern slavery improve their resilience to being re-exploited. I’ve seen first-hand how much of a difference the long-term support makes for our clients and how it can completely transform their lives in ways they never thought possible!

“They can achieve so much with the right support in place – e.g. going from homelessness and being at risk of re-exploitation, to having stable employment and accommodation. I know fundraising is essential for us to be able to continue providing long-term support to survivors, which is why it’s so important that as many people as possible get involved.”

Last year’s successful Sofa to Summit event saw City Hearts staff and supporters raise £30,000, by virtually tackling the 56 miles to the summit of Kilimanjaro around their own towns. The money raised went towards the creation of a restoration hub, a place where care items for survivors could be collected and distributed more easily.

This year’s event aims to raise £30,000 for the Integration Support Department, which looks after the long-term emotional needs of survivors of modern slavery. The department runs programmes aimed at increasing the confidence, self-worth, and resilience of survivors, so they are able to navigate the world more safely and independently.

Anyone wishing to take part in the trek on 9 July can sign up here; an early bird sign-up price of £25pp is available until 12 June with discount code CHHEROES.