A CHESTER orthopaedic consultant and his son have braved the elements to successfully complete the Three Peaks challenge in aid of homeless people and refugees.

Mark Webb and 17-year-old son Joseph climbed Ben Nevis, Scafell and Snowdon in under 24 hours on Saturday, June 8, overcoming dreadful weather on two of the peaks and a complete closure on the M6 along the way.

They raised money for Chester charity Share, which supports local homeless people and also refugees across Europe.

Mark said: "Having a place to call home is a basic human need and most of us cannot even imagine not having a safe and warm place for our families to sleep at night. So we wanted to raise money for Share’s ‘buy-a-brick’ appeal to provide supported housing for homeless people in Chester."

Mark and Joseph had company as they were joined by the ‘Tip Toppers’ - "normal out-of-shape, middle-aged guys who want to do something for the Christie hospital to say thanks for looking after our great friend Jonny, and to help them continue to support others in their battle against cancer".

Out of the original group of 16, Mark and Joseph were two of the nine who successfully completed the challenge in the target time.

The pair were able to walk 23 miles, ascending and descending more than 3,000m of mountain, and drive more than 460 miles in the 24-hour target, with Joseph – a sixth form student at the King's School Chester – completing the challenge first in an impressive 22 hours and 15 minutes.

Joseph completed Ben Nevis in four hours and 10 minutes, Scafell Pike in three hours and 30 minutes and Snowdon in two hours and seven minutes.

They have so far managed to raise a whopping £1,500 for the Share buy-a-brick appeal, with people still able to donate online at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/mark-webb32.

The Tip Toppers, meanwhile, were able to raise about £4,800 for the Christie hospital.