A cancer survivor from Bath is running the half marathon for Macmillan Cancer Support, and is encouraging others to join her.

Jenny Plant, age 34, is asking for people who have a place but are not running for a charity to support the work of Macmillan.

She survived cancer, but sadly lost her mother to the disease.

In her memory she is running the 13.1 miles.

Jenny, who lives in Camden Crescent, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2004, and her life was turned upside down.

She said: "My life became a hamster wheel of hospitals, surgery, chemo and radiotherapy.

"My family were brilliant throughout the experience and my mum - who herself had previously battled breast cancer - accompanied me to every appointment, seeing me through some really dark times."

Two years later she was given the all-clear, but in the same year her mother died from ovarian cancer.

Jenny said: "Macmillan were a real support to my mum especially during her final months and I would love to think this service could be available to anyone that has to go through a similar experience.

"If I could encourage just one more runner to raise sponsorship money through running the Bath Half for Macmillan, that would be brilliant.

"Some 99 per cent of Macmillan's income is from voluntary donations, so they need as much support as they can get."

Macmillan fundraising manager for Bath, Anna Cairns said: "It's so wonderful to have support from people like Jenny who have been through such a lot.

"As you can see the help we provide people with cancer is absolutely essential and we want to be able to give support to everyone who needs it.

"Everyone's experience with cancer is different.

"Macmillan understands this and offers such a huge range of support services - from nurses to online communities, to financial advisers- that there is something there to help everyone living with cancer."

Over the last five years, Macmillan has supported more than 12,000 people living with cancer in the Bath area.

If you are running the marathon and would like to support Macmillan visit www.macmillan.org/bathhalfmarathon or call 01179 670975.

Meanwhile, mini-rugby players will be running 1.5 miles to raise money to help premature babies at the Royal United Hospital.

Players from the Bath Mini Rugby under-7s team are taking part in the Bath Half Marathon Family Fun Run, which the Forever Friends Appeal is the lead charity for.

Coach Andy Mason chose to support the appeal after his eldest son Charlie, now aged six, spent time in the unit after he was born.

He said: "The family fun run will be a great opportunity for the Bath Minis Under-7s to run as a team, have their own personal triumphs, and have fun raising money for a very worthwhile charity."

The team also includes the NICU architect Matt Vaudin running with his son.

All the money raised will go towards the Space to Grow campaign, to build a new neonatal intensive care unit at the RUH.

Events fundraiser Natalie Hannam said: "It is fantastic to be lead charity for such a popular event.

"With the number of places in the race having been doubled this year, we are hoping to raise as much money as possible for the NICU campaign, which will help us to get an important step closer to our target."

The Forever Friends Appeal aims to raise £3.1 million to fund the building.

So far more than £1.8 million has been raised, leaving just over £1.3 million to go.

One in ten babies are born prematurely or seriously ill and need to be cared for in NICU, with some babies staying in the unit for up to six months.

Their survival depends on the skills of doctors and nurses in NICU, where every decision can become a life-saving one.

The Forever Friends Appeal is also still recruiting teams to take part in the Human Table Football Competition on Saturday March 20 at the Olympiad in Chippenham.

To sign up contact Natalie Hannam on 01225 821535 or visit www.foreverfriendsappeal.co.uk.

* A solicitor is swapping his suit for running clothes for his first Bath Half.

Simon Elliman, from Bath solicitors Withy King is running the 13 miles to raise money for disability charity Scope.

He suffered a setback earlier this month after experiencing problems with his knees but he is now back on track, and hopes to raise more than £500.

Scope is a disability charity that focuses on people with cerebral palsy.

Cerebral palsy is a physical condition that affects movement.

As head of the clinical negligence team Simon works closely with families who have children with the condition.

He said: "Withy King has an excellent track record in securing compensation to help improve the quality of life for those who have acquired a disability as a result of medical mistakes and this work has brought us into contact with a number of charities that work with disabled people.

"I look forward to raising as much money as possible for Scope, a family that provides a lifetime of practical advice and support for disabled people and their families by running the Bath Half Marathon - I just hope my legs are up to the job."

Scope aims to give disabled people the same opportunities as everyone else.

Senior events fundraiser Thomas Dixon said: "I'd like to thank Simon for choosing to raise money for Scope.

"The money he raises will make an important difference to the lives of the thousands of disabled people we support."

For more information visit www.scope.org.uk.

* A student from Bath is running the half marathon to help beat the disease which threatened his life as a baby.

Robert Bennett, 22, who is in his final year studying accountancy and finance at the University of Bath, was struck down by meningitis when he was one.

His full recovery has prompted him to help raise money for Meningitis UK's vaccine research work, and so he will be running 13 miles to help.

Robert, from Entry Hill, said: "I had quite a bad fever so my parents took me to the doctors, who sent me straight to the local hospital where I was diagnosed with meningitis.

"I was moved to a specialist ward and it was a really worrying time.

"Thankfully I've made a good recovery but realise that hundreds of other people aren't so lucky, which is why I chose to run for Meningitis UK.

"It's always been a cause that's very important to me."

Robert will be part of the Meningitis Musketeers team, with the motto 'All 4 One and One 4 All' – to highlight the fact that meningitis can kill in under four hours.

This is the second time that he has taken part in the marathon for Meningitis UK, and is looking forward to it.

Robert said: "I ran the Bath Half two years ago and it was pretty tough.

"I usually run five miles or 10kms so had never run so far before.

"The last couple of miles were very tough.

"I'm definitely looking forward to it and know I can do the distance."

All the money Robert raises will go towards Meningitis UK's Search 4 a Vaccine Campaign, which aims to make £7million to fund vital research into developing a vaccine against Meningitis B – the most common form of the disease in the UK.

Chief executive Steve Dayman said "Robert's running efforts are really remarkable.

"We're very thankful to him and all our Meningitis Musketeers for taking part in the Bath Half Marathon and we hope they enjoy what should be a great day.

"Every penny raised will go towards our single focus – to find a vaccine to eradicate meningitis.

"Our ultimate goal is to spare people the heartache thousands of families have suffered by losing a loved one to meningitis."

To sponsor Robert visit www.justgiving.com/Robert-Bennett0

For more information on meningitis, or to support Meningitis UK's Search 4 a Vaccine Campaign call 0117 373 73 73 or visit www.meningitisuk.org.

* An animal-loving adventurer will be running the Bath Half dressed as a monkey to raise funds for injured wild animals.

Victoria Stent, 29, from Sham Castle Lane, is tackling the 13 mile course to raise money for Inti Wara Yassi, a wild animal sanctuary in Bolivia.

To raise awareness and to stand out from the crowd she will be wearing a monkey costume.

Victoria spent eight months at the sanctuary in 2005, working with monkeys, wild cats, birds and tortoises.

Since then she has been working in South Africa as a safari guide, and has returned to the UK to complete a masters in biodiversity conservation.

Victoria still has connections with the sanctuary, and wants to raise money to help.

She said: "I want to help wherever I can so thought it would be good fun to run the Bath Half, to not only get donations but to also raise some awareness about the sanctuary.

"Inti Wara Yassi is dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of beautiful and often endangered species.

"Hundreds of animals are currently being cared for, but the charity itself receives no funding from the government.

"The cost of feeding all these animals, various veterinary bills, cages and equipment is staggering.

"I will be running the Bath half Marathon dressed as a monkey to try to raise some awareness and much needed funds for the park, so that the sanctuary can continue to provide a safe and loving home for abused and injured wildlife."

To support Victoria visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/victoriastent.

For more information on Inti Wara Yassi, visit www.intiwarayassi.org.

And a brave knight from the round table will be tackling the route to raise money for school and community resources in the Gambia.

Duncan Cameron, from Bath, will wear chain mail and carry a shield for the race.

He will be transformed into Sir Duncan of Somerset to raise funds to help school children in the Gambia get a better education.

To support Sir Duncan visit www.knightrunners.org.