Welcome to the ‘Louise Smalley Walk’ website!
2024 is the Louise Smalley Walk’s 30th Anniversary Year.
The Louise Smalley Walk is an annual sponsored challenge walk, 40 miles in length.
So far, we have raised over a quarter of a million pounds for local charities and good causes.
We are based in Whitwell, North East Derbyshire.
Given that 2024 is our next big anniversary, we will be completing the wonderful Millers Dale Route. It is going a be another spectacular event and one you won’t want to miss.
2024 Walker Applications
If you would like to be one of 2024’s walkers, please follow the link below to our online application form.
We will be completing the Miller’s Dale route on the 15th June 2024. To be one of our walkers you will need to follow this link below to complete the online application.
2024 Walker Application Form
Once complete your entry will be provisional until you have paid the £15 entry fee via bank transfer to the details show below:
Account Name: Louise Smalley Fund.
Account Number: 9034 7167
Sort Code: 20 55 62
If you have any questions or issues whilst attempting to apply email: LSWalkapplication@gmail.com
After the nomination and election process concluded, Just Good Friends Club was chosen as the recipient for the 2024 walk. The link below will take you to more information about how the money raised will help in and around our local community.
Walk Review for 2023
2023 has been another successful year for the Louise Smalley Walk. It has also been a year of transition and change.
One of the first things that happened post the last AGM, was that we held our first Coffee Morning which was a great success and a learning curve which we used to improve our next one just before Christmas.
We began with a new route for which we must thank Ian Johnson for his hard work both in working on and plotting the route, in his efforts to seek out, check and establish several checkpoints and to promote the walk.
Training walks began and were found extremely useful by several walkers some of whom became ‘a happy band’ of regulars in the new social walks which have been established thanks to the hard work and dedication of Pete Wallace.
Sadly, two things happened just prior to the walk. The first was that Joe broke his foot whilst training and was unable to walk on the day and the second, that he decided to stand down after twenty-nine years of unswerving devotion to the walk which he founded. Our particular thanks go to Joe and our best wishes for this new part of his life.
Walk day saw nearly 90 walkers bused to Bonsall to begin their journey back home. Whilst there were one or two who dropped out, overall, it was a very happy walk with only very minor first aid cases along the route. First Aid was provided by Danny Hardwick and his team of volunteers for which we are very grateful. All walkers were in well before the cut off time and were ably supported towards the end by Tracey Johnson, Sarah Lancashire, Sarah Knowles, Katherine Lawrence and Darren Godfrey. Thank you to them.
Of course, we once again had an amazing support team of more than forty people covering six checkpoints as well as the set up on Friday and initial and final check in. We also had the ‘A’ team of Trevor and Joe who went around the route encouraging, supporting and haranguing walkers. Our grateful thanks go to all of them for their hard work and for some, their continuing support year on year.
We would also, at this point, like to thank John and Sharon at the Royal Oak for allowing us a base and for their support over the weekend and also to James Galpin and the Bakestone Moor Junior Football Club for their continued help.
In the second half of the year, we became involved with the Chesterfield Walking Festival and we will be hosting three walks over the Festival week this year, 2024.
The year’s finale came with a newly revamped Celebration night. A local band, Vacant Generation, provided the music, the Barnes team did some amazing catering and local businesses generously gave raffle prizes which Paul Woods drew in his own inimitable fashion. Some heartfelt and poignant speeches were given and of course a cheque was presented. This was for a massive £15,601.82 which was one of the highest amounts we have achieved and which in these times is particularly amazing.
At the very end of the year the group was contacted by David Stewart from The Kings Award for Voluntary Service. We had been nominated for this award by Gaynor Smith, supported by Pete Hurst and Wendy-Marie Pallant. Whilst we have since learned that our nomination will not be going forward, the fact that people had been inspired to do this on our behalf was humbling.
We have thanked a lot of people in this review and make no apologies for this. They say it takes a village to raise a child, for us it is the coming together of a community which raises this ‘baby’.
Other ways to help
If you don’t feel up to walking, but would like to support the LSW and the chosen beneficiary, please follow below to see the other ways that you can get involved.
Our major supporters are:
Lhoist – Mineral and Lime Producer
With grateful thanks to all.