A student from Breightmet raised more than £3,500 for a charity climb up Kilimanjaro this summer.

Ellie Roberts, aged 19, has been fundraising for her challenge since last November and will donate the money she raised to Hope for Children, a charity that works in several countries, including four in Africa.

When she reached her target, she said that fundraising so much money has been one of the hardest things she had ever done.

Ellie said: “Fundraising is not as easy as I thought it would be and takes a lot of resilience and time and effort, but we got there in the end!”

The former Thornleigh College and Sixth Form student held a number fundraising events over the summer including a garden party and barbeque at her home on Bailey Lane.

Ellie, who lives in London now, collected a total of £230.26 by bucket shaking at Liverpool Street, Piccadilly Circus and Westminster stations.

She also organised a pub quiz, music night and a car boot sale at Middlebrook.

Ellie’s grandmother also helped the cause by hosting an afternoon tea at her home which raised £288.

Her online fundraising page has now reached a grand total of £3,502.30, including £500 from Bolton’s Provincial Walsh Trust and £422.22 from Frontier Agriculture where her father Tom works.

Boots, Costa and Marks and Spencers all donated vouchers which Ellie used for raffles, but she said that she was particularly grateful for the Carrs Pasties vouchers she was given.

Ellie has just finished her first year studying Applied Medical Sciences at University College London and will travel to Tanzania with a team of 30 students from her university.

Ellie has been training for the challenge since January but said that she is still “a bit nervous” about climbing the world’s highest free-standing mountain

She said: “It’s really strenuous. I’ve never done anything like it in my life. It’s gonna be a completely new experience. But I think the fundraising will get me through it.”

Before the climb, Ellie will spend a day with some of the children the money raised will go towards, holding educational sessions and games with them.