An 11-year-old is taking on an extraordinary challenge to raise money for Rock2Recovery, a charity that provides non-clinical coaching to help members of the armed forces, veterans and their families manage stress and mental health challenges.

Teige Higgins-Faragher, described by his family as clever, creative and determined, was inspired to support the cause after his father, Robin, met one of the charity’s co-founders and star of hit reality TV show SAS: Who Dares Wins, Jason Fox.

Motivated by the message ‘Stay strong, work hard, and you can be whatever you want to be,’ Teige was set the challenge of climbing three major UK summits alongside his dad.

So far, he has completed Pen y Fan and Y Wyddfa (Snowdon), with his final climb still to come in May.

The third summit of his challenge will be Ben Nevis. The iconic collapsed volcano in Scotland stands at 1,345 metres and will be Teige’s biggest climb yet.

Teige said: ‘I’ve always wanted to climb mountains, and when I found out what the highest ones in the UK were, it just felt like an amazing goal to go for. It’s something big to aim at, and it means something as well.’

He described reaching his first two summits as amazing and said that although it was cold, the views were incredible. He is proud of what he has achieved so far, having previously raised £300 for Housing Matters by making Christmas cards.

Completing different tasks for charity is something he has always been keen to do.

‘When I wrote to Jason, we were at a Housing Matters event. I’d already done some fundraising before, and I’d watched the SAS show, so it felt like a good moment to just ask what to do next.

‘Me and my dad had climbed the Old Man of Coniston, and I wanted a proper challenge. I didn’t really expect much, I just thought I’d ask. When he replied with Ben Nevis, Pen-y-Fan and Snowdon, it made it all feel real. Like, this is actually something I can go and do.’

The hardest part for Teige so far has been Y Wyddfa, with the final stretch proving particularly tough. At one point he was using both hands and feet to reach the summit, which he said felt like it was taking forever.

Looking ahead to Ben Nevis, Teige said: ‘Ben Nevis will be a tough climb as well, and I’m really looking forward to it. I haven’t looked into it too much yet, which might be a good thing, but I know it’ll be a big challenge and a good one to finish on.’

Robin said his role is to support Teige both physically and emotionally throughout the climbs, reminding him of what he is capable of without pushing too far.

‘He’s actually become really aware of it himself. He’s pointed out other people heading up without proper equipment, which says a lot about how seriously he’s taking it.’

People can donate to Teige’s cause through his JustGiving page.

Updates on the challenge are also being shared on Facebook via Teige’s Tough Treks.