Charity hero from Peterborough sets 12 new challenges to raise money for good causes

A charity hero from Peterborough, who has raised more than £170k for local causes, is at it again – with a new challenge each month in 2025.

Hair salon owner Liza Raby began her epic fundraising journey 20 years ago after her son Spencer was born with a range of conditions that required complex care.

Spencer, now 26, was diagnosed with an incredibly rare genetic condition known as UPF3B syndrome – which only affects around 50 people in the UK. The condition causes severe development delay. He also has Corpus Callosum, which means the part of his brain that sends out messages was not properly formed.

Liza was inspired to create her latest fundraising initiative, dubbed Challenge 12, by her son – and hopes it will help her reach a £200k fundraising milestone.

The challenges will support two charities: Say Hello - which helps adults with learning disabilities to overcome loneliness and social isolation, and the Peterborough branch of Circles Network – which aims to build inclusive communities.

Staff at both of Liza’s salons – Spencer’s Salon in Peterborough, and LH Hair Design in Bourne, will get involved in the challenges – which include everything from a blow dry marathon, to a parachute jump.

Liza said: “From fun and light-hearted tasks to bold and daring feats, these challenges will test our creativity, resilience, and teamwork.

“Challenge 12 is more than just a fundraising effort – it’s about inspiring kindness, unity, and action within our community.

“Not every one is doing every event, but there will always be at least one of us doing each event – probably me,” she laughed.

The team have already completed their first challenge this month – a 12-hour sponsored silence – which was no easy feat in a hairdressing salon.

"It was quite difficult,” admits Liza. “We didn’t booked in any clients that day and used the time to catch up on admin and spring cleaning, but we did end up using a few post-it notes.”

Liza explained that the aim of the silence was to gain some understanding of how Spencer experiences the world around him.

“Every day Spencer navigates a world that often relies on words to communicate, express, and connect,” Liza said. “To better understand Spencer's experiences and to raise awareness, our team took on this sponsored silence

“Spencer has a severe learning disability, so it wasn’t quite the same, but it offered a little insight into his non-verbal world.”

The community can get involved with some of the challenges being held at the two hair salons, by spreading the word, or sponsorship.

The monthly challenges are as follows:

• 8 January - Sponsored silence 12 hours (completed)

• 14 February - Blow dry-a-thon 9am-5pm (£12 short £24 long)

• 16 March - A 12-mile walk

• 18 April - Cake sale in Easter fancy dress

• 11 May - Bike ride

• 7 June - Obstacle course

• 6 July - Kayak / paddleboard challenge

• 3 August - 24 mile relay swim

• September - A 3-hour boot camp session

• October - Parachute jump

• November - Bounce/Zumba-thon for 3 hours

• December- A 12-hour Singathon

For more information about Challenge 12, contact Spencer's Hair Salon on 01733 324568 or visit https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/liza-raby-1