A TEAM of university staff and students conquered England's third-highest peak in swimwear to raise money and awareness of a suicide prevention charity.

Mark Christie and the team of seven Cumbria University staff and student faced rain, sunshine, and vulnerability as they walked up Helvellyn in a time of five hours in the name of Every Life Matters.

"We were a bit anxious about the weather but Cumbria Weather were really supportive and were giving us regular bulletins which was really nice," the 59-year-old said.

"When we arrived in the car park at 7.30am on Saturday it was quite funny because there were people there waiting to take pictures of us.

"When we set off, we were not quite sure what the reaction we would get. One or two people were not quite sure where to look but a lot of people were giving us the thumbs up and asking how they can donate to the cause."

The team saw a few spots of rain about a third of the way up and a few had to put on rain jackets to protect them from the weather, but Mark, Steve, and Molly decided to soldier on solely in swimwear to the top.

When asked why swimwear, why Helvellyn, and why Every Life Matters, the sports lecturer at University of Cumbria and the fundraiser organiser explained this is because so many people have been impacted by suicide and mental health, and the mountain represented the obstacle of mental health that can be conquered.

The decision to just wear swimwear was inspired by the legendary 'Speedo Mick' who has raised huge sums for youth causes nationally and it represented vulnerability whilst conquering the obstacle.

"I know that when I started at the university 13 years ago the number of students struggling with their mental health that spoke to me about it I could count on one hand, but in the last four or five years that has really increased," the Kendal resident continued.

"People used to avoid talking about this years and years ago. So, this is one of the last taboos so my advice to anyone struggling is not to bottle it up and talk to someone about this."

Mr Christie is hoping that this fundraiser can generate some funds for Every Life Matters as well as increase conversation on the matter and has been overwhelmed by the support received so far in the county.

The fundraiser has raised £2,110 at the time of writing and if you want to donate then you can visit justgiving.com/fundraising/TeamCumbria and click 'give now'.