A Hexham grandma who walked 10,000 steps everyday throughout Lent to help end water poverty in areas of the world has raised nearly £4,500.

Rosemary Theobalds (80) completed her Walk for Water to raise money for Cafod (Catholic Agency for Overseas Development) on Saturday.

She set herself the challenger after watching Cafod’s video of a man named Abdella (23) who lives in Afar in Ethiopia and has to walk 10 hours a day to get water.

Her son, Jonathan, walked the last leg with her.

He said: “It was such a beautiful day in the Hexham sunshine.

“We walked one of her favourite routes, up hill and down dale with lovely clear views of Hexham in the sunshine from the top of Causey Hill.

“Mum certainly hasn’t taken the easy routes to clock up her steps per day - steep hills, bridleways, farm tracks and wooded areas!”

Rosemary has been logging her steps each day on her donation page, along with short updates on where she has walked.

After completing her final walk, Rosemary, who lives in Low Burswell, enjoyed a celebratory glass of bubbly - as well as a large glass of water.

Jonathan added Rosemary has been “overwhelmed by the generosity of her sponsors and donors”.

Rosemary, who has eight children and 19 grandchildren, has walked a total of 466,000 steps and raised £4,357.

This is enough for solar-powered water pumps in six villages.

Rosemary has been heavily involved in the local community and has been a key member of various charities helping local homeless, disadvantaged and disabled groups.

To donate, visit https://walk.cafod.org.uk/fundraising/10000-steps-for-lent

To learn more about Cafod and the Walk for Water, visit https://cafod.org.uk/Fundraise/Walk-for-Water