A mum with a fear of dogs and heights embraced both - by completing an aeroplane 'wing walk' for a canine charity.

Lucy Sladen, 31, admits she's always been a little fearful around animals after not interacting with many growing up.

But she says this wouldn't let this stop her from raising money for South East Dog Rescue (SEDR) - her workplace Three R's Teacher Recruitment's chosen charity for this year.

Brave Ms Sladen faced her fears to soar above the clouds at heights of up to 700ft and speeds of more than 110mph, raising £140 more than her target of £500 for the dog rescue charity.

The mum-of-one, from Romney Marsh in Kent, says that though her task was "daunting", the prospect of raising hundreds of pounds for charity was even more so. "

Ms Sladen said although plenty of her colleagues have dogs themselves, she was the one who put her hand up and volunteered for the wing walk.

On the GoFundMe page for the fundraiser, she wrote: "Is it a bird? Is it a plane? "

"No, it's just me being both thrilled and terrified to be wing-walking over the Kent countryside on 15th Sept 2024. "

"For those that know me, you may be surprised given I have always been shy around anything with four or more (or no) legs. "

"The truth is - I never was comfortable around dogs and animals growing up. "

"And as I've gotten older, I've admired the efforts of animal charities and non-profits, seeing first-hand from friends who volunteer at sanctuaries how much heart-aching work is involved. "

"Still, my fears kept blocking me from helping in a way that felt truly hands-on and proactive."

After avoiding finding too much out about what her wing walk entailed, Ms Sladen finally completed her challenge on Sunday (15/09).

"Unfortunately, the older I'm getting the more I'm realising I have a fear of heights," she said. "

"I never really thought about the wing walk. It was more, 'I've got a daunting amount of money to raise'. "

"It was really good - I was so much more nervous about fundraising such a huge target. "

"By Saturday I'd reached £500. I was on a high and ready to get soaring through the air by the time it came around. "

"It was really good fun and I'd highly recommend it - especially if it's raising money for a good cause."

On the choice of SEDR as her work's charity, Ms Sladen added: "We're a recruitment company covering Kent and we like to keep things local, so choosing SEDR as our charity made sense."

"The wing walk was something a little bit crazy and different... We needed something that was quite impactful. "

"It was a good talking point with our schools and teachers to get the donations in. "

"A couple of weeks before the questions began coming in... I didn't know the answers because I'd been avoiding them so I wouldn't have a chance to panic. "

"The nerves started mounting a couple of weeks before. "

"I was a lot more nervous than I had maybe thought I would be. "

"But I'd raised the £500 so I had to get up and do it. "

"I was high enough so that everyone who came to support me were just little dots on the ground. "

"Animals were never something that I grew up with."

"I always had an interest, but from afar... I've always had that inner fear. "

"It goes to show that just because you fear something, it can still be turned around for good. "

"I'm a lot better around animals now."

To donate to Ms Sladen's fundraiser, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/lucys-wing-walk-for-sedr