Twin brothers are to complete the National Three Peaks Challenge in aid of two hospital charities close to their hearts.

Ian Robert Slater and Thomas Slater from Palletland – a family-run business based in St Helens in Merseyside – are taking on the challenge in aid of The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital (RJAH) and Whiston Hospital.

They are embarking on the challenge as a way of saying thank you to the two hospitals, which helped them through an extremely difficult time.

Ian and Thomas both received devastating diagnoses just months apart when they were teenagers. Thomas was diagnosed with desmoplastic fibroma after breaking his leg – one of the rarest bone tumours in the world – and just months later Thomas found out he had acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Fifteen years have now passed and Ian has made a full recovery, however Thomas is still undergoing treatment to help reduce the tumour and get some stability in his leg. He now has a metal plate in his leg with 15 screws to strengthen the bone.

The brothers will aim to complete the challenge for their 31st birthdays at the end of September, and joining them will be their dad Ian Slater, older brother Daniel and colleagues from their family business.

The challenge involves climbing Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon – the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales in 24 hours.

Ian said: “We wanted to be able to give something back to the hospitals that helped us, so we can improve the lives of others like us, who are going through hard and trying times. Any donation however large or small will mean a great deal to us and will be our motivation on the day.”

Victoria Sugden, RJAH Charity representative, said: “We’re so grateful to Ian, James and the team at Palletland for taking on such a huge challenge to help raise funds for the RJAH Charity. The pandemic has proved difficult for many charities and their support is so appreciated.”

To read more about Ian and Thomas’ story and to sponsor them, please visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/cea3sn-palletland-3-peak-challenge?fbclid=IwAR2btOugg1sDD3JrWte04idjtOvot8N22XGTycpraBd4EeeHI9xIPlFa7C8

Pictured: Ian and Thomas with their dad Ian and older brother, Daniel, who are also taking part in the challenge.