Maidenhead student 'never dreamed' of raising five figures for epilepsy charity

A Claires Court student has completed her most ambitious fundraising challenge to date – cycling 25 miles and bringing her total donations for an epilepsy charity to a whopping £29,000.

Year 8 pupil Clodagh Ennis lives with Dravet Syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy.

She began fundraising four years ago with a simple goal: to support children like her who rely on specialist equipment such as monitors, and to raise awareness about what it’s like to live with epilepsy.

Rather than letting the condition define her, she has transformed her experience into motivation to help others and become an advocate for the Young Epilepsy charity.

Each year, she has set out to make her challenge tougher, steadily increasing her yearly cycling distance over the past four years until her efforts paid off after she completed the major 25-mile course.

“I feel incredibly lucky that so many of my family and friends have supported me so much to make this happen,” she told the Advertiser.

“Every year, they look forward to what the challenge is going to be and how tough I want to make it.

“I never dreamed that it would be possible to raise this much money.

“I just wanted to help children like me, and make people understand more about epilepsy.”

The 13-year-old from Bracknell trained for months, cycling every weekend and gradually building up from 10-mile rides to longer distances.

“On the day of the bike ride, it took us three hours to complete it – I was exhausted at the end but so happy to have completed the challenge,” said Clodagh.

She started in Maidenhead, following the Jubilee River through Windsor and Datchet, and returning to Maidenhead in around three hours.

She wasn’t alone on the day, as Clodagh’s challenge was a true family affair.

Her mum, dad, cousin and two friends completed the route with her, while relatives in Ireland took part remotely and sent messages and videos of encouragement.

This year, Clodagh set herself a £5,000 fundraising goal, but the community had other ideas and she smashed her target, raising £6,400.

Over the past four years, her fundraising efforts have generated a cumulative total of £29,000.

“I am absolutely amazed at how much money we have raised to support Young Epilepsy,” she said.

“My family and friends have helped me all the way, and many have taken part in the challenges.

“Everyone at Claires Court, teachers and students, has been brilliant. So many have sponsored me, and even one of my teachers did the challenge when I was in junior school.”

Clodagh has spoken in school assemblies to raise awareness and help educate her peers about epilepsy, something she says is just as important as fundraising.

“I hope people will be more aware of the great work that charities like Young Epilepsy do and how much they help people,” she added.

“If you want to do something, you should go for it – people are very kind and generous and will help you.”

A spokesperson for Claires Court said the school is ‘immensely proud’ of Clodagh’s resilience and for shining a light on a cause close to her heart.

"Epilepsy can be one of the most frightening and isolating conditions for children and young people," Clodagh shared on her JustGiving page.

"By supporting this cause, we can advocate for better research, treatment options, and practical support that these young individuals desperately need."