Leicestershire high school student raises £3,000 for Lamp charity with a sponsored drumathon

Jack Radford, a year 11 student at Gartree High School in Oadby, raised over £3,000 when he took on a 24-hour drumathon sponsored challenge to fundraise for the Lamp mental health charity for the second year running.

In 2022, Jack raised over £1,300 for Lamp with a 12-hour drumathon and went on to win the Young Fundraiser of the Year award in the Leicestershire Community Champion Awards.

This year Jack stepped up the challenge with a 24-hour drumathon! The challenge took place at the school on 29 June when the timer started at the first beat of the drum and stopped 24 hours later.

Jack said:

“The event went really well. It was a great day and I had a lot of fun. I struggled through the night but with the support of teachers and my band, I got through it. The school concert in the evening was a success and it helped raise over £3,000. It was a real community effort from the school, whether that be from all the generous donations or from some of the teachers who I taught to drum. I chose to support Lamp as I am a big supporter of mental health and think the work of Lamp and the money we raised will make a big difference to as many people as possible.”

Ed Wilson, Deputy Headteacher at Gartree High School said:

“The entire school community is incredibly proud of the efforts Jack and his friends put into the 24-hour drumathon. It was a really fun 24 hours, with students and staff and members of our wider community joining in with singing, dancing and some very amateur drumming! We’re also very proud as a school to be associated with Lamp and the fantastic work they do in our local community.”

Richard Kotulecki, Lamp’s CEO added:

“We are so grateful to Jack for taking on this fundraising challenge, not once but twice! I’d like to express our heartfelt thanks to Jack and the school for their support.”

You can still donate to Jack’s challenge by clicking here, and see him action below!