Keen walkers Laura and Richard laced up their boots and climbed to the 1085 metres summit on June 21. The couple, who are keen walkers, started at 5am to beat the crowds and the heat – the thermometer reached 30° degrees that day.

Laura Evans said: “Supporting the local community is important to me. We started raising funds for We Love Lichfield when we first opened having seen the amazing work they do to support hundreds of small voluntary groups across the district.

“We started by donating £1 from every ear wax removal completed in our clinic. We then attended the We Love Lichfield Christmas Grant Giveaway. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house and it inspired Rich and I to train for our Snowdon challenge.

“It feels so good to raise funds for such a brilliant local cause and we will continue to support We Love Lichfield. And we’ve definitely got the big challenge bug – Rich and I will be taking on the Yorkshire Three Peaks next year.”

We Love Lichfield advisor James Price was presented with a cheque by Laura at her Sandford Street clinic. James said: “A huge thank you to Laura, her husband Rich and the Cathedral Hearing team. To raise this amount of money while starting a brand-new business from scratch is simply amazing. Again, on behalf of everyone at We Love Lichfield and our grant recipients, thank you.”

Having worked in the audiology profession for 16 years, Laura has seen how improving people’s hearing can transform their quality of life and is passionate about raising awareness and improving access to care.

She said: “Taking good care of your hearing health can greatly improve your overall well-being, but people often put off having a test due to the mystery and the misconceptions surrounding the process. The truth is going for a hearing test is simple, easy and painless.

“As we move into my second year, I am on a mission to break down the barriers to having hearing tests and improving people’s hearing health. That’s why my appointments are longer than the norm to ensure I can totally understand my patient’s needs. Also, as an independent practice I have access to a wide range of hearing solutions ensuring patients get what is right for them.”

We Love Lichfield is one of the Staffordshire and Shropshire Community Foundation’s place-based funds. It provides grants to a wide range of projects operating across the district of Lichfield. The fund considers applications from local groups in need twice a year. It raises money and then the returns are given away. Companies and individuals make up the bulk of the donors to the fund, either through direct donations, or by fundraising.

All the money raised is invested through an endowment fund in line with charity commission guidelines. The financial return from the fund is then distributed as small grants across the area. The beauty of this model is that it will provide a source of sustainable funding that can be used for grants long into the future. It’s almost like a pension scheme set up to support community and voluntary groups across Lichfield.

Individuals and businesses can raise money for We Love Lichfield. They can fund raise or they can donate via Enthuse, at: cfss.enthuse.com/welovelichfield

For more about We Love Lichfield, visit welovelichfield.co.uk