AN Oxfordshire bishop and his daughter are taking part in a ten-mile charity run to raise funds for Zambian children orphaned or made vulnerable by the Aids virus.

The Rt Rev Colin Fletcher, the Bishop of Dorchester, and his daughter Pippa, 26, are training for the Great South Run, to support the Oxfordshire-based charity Cecily’s Fund.

The fund was set up in 1998 by Alison and Basil Eastwood, in memory of their daughter Cecily, from Stonesfield.

The 19-year-old was killed in a traffic accident in 1997 while on her gap year volunteering with orphans in the Zambian town of Kitwe, where the charity still operates.

Bishop Colin said: “I first got to know about Cecily’s Fund when I was working with the Archbishop of Canterbury. Cecily’s Fund and the work that it is doing is quite magnificent and I count it as a great privilege to be running for it this year.

“Pippa, my daughter, will be running with me. She’s just qualified as a doctor and she will have got married three weeks before, so October promises to be pretty eventful.

“Kate, my other daughter, is also running, so it promises to be quite a family event.”

Bishop Colin celebrates his tenth anniversary in the Oxford Diocese this year.

The sponsorship raised by him and Pippa will help to provide Zambia’s poorest children with shoes, uniforms, books, pens and help with school fees.

Education will help the children to gain knowledge and skills so that they can earn a living, and there will be less chance of contracting HIV.

Earlier this year, schools across Oxfordshire joined a fundraising effort to help the Cecily’s Fund.

On one day in April, 5p each from 12,500 roast meals sold by Food With Thought, Oxfordshire County Council's school catering service, was given to the charity, raising more than £650.

The Great South Run, which takes place in Portsmouth on October 24, is one of Europe’s most popular ten-mile races and started in Southampton in 1990.

The race has attracted world-class athletes from around the world including Liz McColgan, Paula Radcliffe and Mo Farah, and more than 23,000 runners take part each year.

Kate, 24, is taking part in the run to raise money for a different charity.

Sabita Banerji, a spokesman for Cecily’s Fund, said: “We are thrilled that Bishop Colin and Pippa are running to raise funds for us and it’s possible that they could raise more than £1,000.

“They will not only help to raise money to keep many vulnerable children in school this year, but will also help to spread awareness about the valuable work we are doing — and, hopefully, bring us more supporters.”

To find out how to sponsor Bishop Colin and his daughter, visit www.cecilysfund.org/colin or call 01993 869005.