Three students from Marshgate Primary in Momentum t-shirts with Mo the Owl

The team is made up of parents and Year Five students from the school, and the event will raise money for Momentum Children’s Charity, and for the school’s Parent Staff Association (PSA).

The school’s chosen charity, Momentum, was nominated by a parent from the school, Alba Fransson, whose family received support from the charity when her youngest son, Jack, was diagnosed with cancer in 2021 at just two years old. Throughout his treatment and recovery, Momentum provided invaluable support to the family.

Alba will be taking on the Snowdon challenge alongside her 10-year-old son, Liam. Alba’s 12-year-old daughter, Marina, also completed the challenge when she was a pupil at the school two years ago.

The Snowdon Summit Challenge will see the team climb to the top of Snowdon, the highest mountain in Wales at 1,085 metres (3,560 feet). The demanding trek will cover around nine miles, with a significant ascent and descent, taking between six and eight hours to complete depending on the route and conditions. On reaching the summit, students and their parents will enjoy spectacular views across Snowdonia National Park.

Talking about the challenge, Alba Fransson, from Richmond, said: “We have been training together for the past few months, going on long walks in Richmond Park and doing Park Run events. We have also been tackling local hills to prepare for the challenge. I have been so proud to see how determined and resilient Liam has been and we can’t wait to reach the summit with the rest of the team.”

Talking about why they are fundraising for Momentum, Alba said: “We found out about Momentum when we were in Kingston Hospital with Jack. We met a Family Support Worker from the charity who was welcoming and understanding, and even though initially we felt we didn’t need them, they helped in so many ways. From a secret cupboard full of goodies in each hospital, to trips to their respite cabins next to the seaside, visits from Santa, outings on their riverboat, and unexpected but needed chats over a cup of tea – they were brilliant. Slowly we realised that they were helping other families in the local area too and that we were all connected by their warm embrace. Sadly, there are many families nearby living with children with cancer and serious illnesses. All of them need that warmth that Momentum can bring, to make them remember that they are still a family that can share smiles and happiness in these difficult times.”

Momentum Children’s Charity supports families across London, Surrey, and Sussex whose children are facing cancer or a life-challenging condition. The charity partners with local hospitals to offer personally tailored support to the entire family through their family support workers, both in hospital and at home.

Marshgate Primary School have set themselves an ambitious £4,000 fundraising target. Please help them reach this by sponsoring them here: Fundraiser – Marshgate primary school Snowdon expedition 2026

To find out more about the work of Momentum Children’s Charity’s social work service, please visit www.momentumcharity.org

Notes to Editors:

Momentum Children’s Charity supports families across London, Surrey and Sussex whose children are facing cancer or a life-challenging condition. We partner with local hospitals to offer personally tailored support to the entire family through our family support workers, both in hospital and at home. Our services include counselling, creative therapies, special experiences, and respite breaks. If the unthinkable happens, and a child dies, we offer specialist bereavement support. The charity receives no government funding and is reliant entirely on voluntary support. 

Founded in 2004, Momentum Children’s Charity was started when Bianca Effemey OBE was working as a receptionist on the Paediatrics Ward at Kingston Hospital. Side effects of chemotherapy treatment can be very painful, and she became aware of the impact they were having on young cancer patients. It became her mission to get white goods donated to the hospital which could be kept full of refreshments, providing some relief to children suffering with mouth ulcers caused by chemotherapy. Momentum has grown from a very small charity to now supporting over 2,500 individuals across 688 families in 2024/25. This includes 502 families with children in active treatment and 186 bereaved families.

If you are interested in learning more about the work Momentum does, seeing the roles they are currently recruiting for or would like to get involved by attending an event, volunteering or making a donation please visit www.momentumcharity.org

www.momentumcharity.org Registered charity number: 1195373

For more information about Momentum and future press opportunities, please contact:  Claire Smith, PR and Communications Officer: clairesmith@momentumcharity.org  /  0208 974 5931