A NORTH-EAST charity which offers support services to families and individuals affected by autism, is being helped by local personal trainer, Mike Martin, to raise much needed donations.

Mike, who runs Odyssey PT, is donating ten per cent of Monday and Friday evening class fees to Daisy Chain for a year.

Stockton-based Daisy Chain is a particularly special charity to Mike and his wife’s family, with his wife's younger brother using the day centre on many occasions.

The Monday and Friday evening classes, open to the general public, are held via Zoom and are for approximately 30-40 minutes. The workouts improve fitness, muscle tone and mobility, and only require a small space to do them.

Tracey Wright, fundraising and media manager for Daisy Chain, said: “Fundraising and support is the lifeline of our charity, and we can’t express enough how grateful we are for businesses like Odyssey PT which contribute to our donations.

“The lockdown has been particularly tough on our charity, not only has it prevented us from providing our much-needed services to people living with autism and their families, it has caused an increase in the need for our respite service.

“As well as the increase in demand for our services, we have unfortunately lost funds largely due to the closure of our superstore. Both lockdowns have resulted in a loss of funds of more than half a million pounds, so it is vital we do everything we can to recoup as much as we can.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our corporate donors and anyone who chooses to fundraise for us, especially players of the People’s Postcode Lottery, who help to raise an incredible amount of money for us. Without the kind-hearted members of the public, we couldn’t provide these vital services for people living with autism.”

Mike said: “I have always wanted to support charities whenever possible and I felt it was important for Odyssey PT to support a charity that is local to it whenever the opportunity arose.

“Daisy Chain provides vital services to those with autism and their families, something we have personal experience of. My wife’s younger brother has autism and has greatly benefitted from the services the charity provides.

“We started the fundraising at the beginning of November and plan to continue for a full year. We hope that as we grow as a company, so will the donation amount for this great charity.

“I would like to thank Daisy Chain for letting us support them and hope we can build a lasting friendship.”